Royal Moroccan Army

The Royal Moroccan Army, officially The Royal Army (الجيش الملكي, l'Armée Royale, Ejército Real) is the branch of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations.

The army is about 175,000 troops strong. In case of war or state of siege, an additional force of 150,000 Reservists, and paramilitary forces, including 20,000 regulars of the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie, 25,000 Auxiliary Forces and 5,000 mobile intervention corps regulars come under the Ministry of Defence command.

Army forces from Morocco have taken part in different wars and battles during the twentieth century, from World War I, to the recent Operation Scorched Earth in Yemen.

History
The Moroccan army has existed continuously since the rising of Almoravid Empire in the 11th-century. During Colonisation and protectorates period (1912–1976), large numbers of Moroccans were recruited for service in the Spahi and Tirailleur regiments of the French Army of Africa. Many served during World War I. During World War II more than 300,000 Moroccan troops (including goumier auxiliaries) served with the Free French forces in North Africa, Italy, France and Austria. The two world conflicts saw Moroccan units earning the nickname of "Todesschwalben" (death swallows) by German soldiers as they showed particular toughness on the battlefield. After the end of World War II, Moroccan troops formed part of the French Far East Expeditionary Corps engaged in the First Indochina War from 1946 to 1954.

The Spanish Army also made extensive use of Moroccan troops recruited in the Spanish Protectorate, during both the Rif War of 1921-26 and the Spanish Civil War of 1936-39. Moroccan Regulares, together with the Spanish Legion, made up Spain's elite Spanish Army of Africa. A para-military gendarmerie, known as the "Mehal-la Jalifianas" and modelled on the French goumieres, was employed within the Spanish Zone.

The Royal Armed Forces were created on 14 May 1956, after the French Protectorate was dissolved. Fourteen thousand Moroccan personnel from the French Army and ten thousand from the Spanish Armed Forces transferred into the newly formed armed forces. This number was augmented by approximately 5,000 former guerrillas from the "Army of Liberation". About 2,000 French officers and NCOs remained in Morocco on short term contracts, until crash training programs at the military academies of St-Cyr, Toledo and Dar al Bayda produced sufficient numbers of Moroccan commissioned officers.

The first wars that Moroccan troops have taken part in the 20th-century as an independent country were the Ifni War and Sand War.

The Royal Moroccan Army fought during the Six-Day War and on the Golan front during the Yom Kippur War of 1973 (mostly in the battle for Quneitra) and intervened decisively in the 1977 conflict known as Shaba I to save Zaire's regime. The Armed Forces also took part in the Gulf War with a Mechanized Battalion and an infantry battalion in the Omar and Tariq Task Forces. But the Moroccan Armed Forces were mostly notable in fighting a 25-year asymmetric war against the POLISARIO, an Algerian backed rebel national liberation movement seeking the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco. (Western Sahara War)


 * Other recent missions and conflicts:
 * Shaba I
 * Shaba II
 * SFOR
 * KFOR
 * MINUSTAH
 * MONUC
 * UNOCI
 * UNOSOM II
 * Battle of Mogadishu (1993)
 * UNOSOM I
 * Perejil Island crisis
 * Operation Active Endeavour
 * International Security Assistance Force Joint Command
 * Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara
 * Operation Scorched Earth
 * UNSMIS

Algeria, Morocco, and other Maghreb states affected by the GSPC insurgency have been assisted in fighting Islamist militants by the United States and the United Kingdom since 2007, when Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara began.

Situation and Equipment
From the beginning of 21st-century, the Moroccan army began a modernisation program that included the purchase of modern equipment and the transformation into a more professional army performing multiple exercises with allied's armies, as a Major non-NATO ally, member of the initiative 5+5 and other cooperation agreements. The army's modernisation program took shape with the acquisitions of weapons such as the Chinese VT-1A and MRLS AR2, American M1A1 Abrams, the HAWK air defense system or the M109A5 Self-Propelled Howitzer.

the organisation and structure of command remained the same:
 * General Command HQ (Rabat
 * Northern Command (Meknes)
 * Southern Command (El Aaiún)

Formations are 10 Independent Armored battalions (GEB), 3 Mechanized Brigades with 19 battalions (RIMZ), 35 Independent Infantry Battalions (BIS), 6 Light security Brigades, 2 Cavalry and 3 Camel Corps battalions (Meharis), 2 Paratroops Brigades (BIP), 2 Airborne battalions (BIAP), 4 Commando battalions and 13 Artillery battalions (GAR), Air defence is included in the Artillery structures and divisions.

Armored diviones are mostly deployed in eastern and southern provinces, all along Algerian border and Moroccan wall. More than 600 tanks are in service: 48 VT-1A, 148 T-72B and 427 M60A3/A3TTS Patton. Some M48 Pattons were retired from active service and stored as reserve with the 1991 cease-fire, the SK-105 Kürassiers had the same fate. In Addition, 200 ex-US refurbished and enhanced M1A1 Abrams are expected to be delivered in a period of 4 years, as the rest of Chinese tanks, to be delivered totally by 2012-13.

The mechanized brigades and Cavalries, equipped with Light Armored Carrier (LAVs), armored personnel carriers (APCs) or infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) for transport, combat and reccon missions, are equipped with: 1,200 M113 in different variants (M113A1/A1-B/A2 APCs, M106A1/A2 mortar carriers, M163 VADS, M981 FISTV, M901A1, etc.), 60 Ratel 20/90, 395 VAB VCI/VTT, 110 ex-Belgian AIFV, 175 AML 90/60 and 110 AMX 10 RC. Other APCs are part of other corps as the Auxiliary's UR-416, or the recent purchase of 88 Lenco BearCat for the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie

The Artillery, gouped in GARs, includes Self-Propelled Howitzers, towed Howitzers, MRLS and Air Defense Systems, mortar carriers are part of the RIMZ. The equipment includes: 248 155mm M109 SPH in different versions, 60 203mm M110A2 SPH, received as EDA from USA, and 100 155mm Mk F3 remain in service. Note that only 155mm towed howitzers are deployed all along the Moroccan Wall, that includes 140 155mm (M198, FH-70, M-1950, M114), 18 130mm (M1954) and 54 105mm (M101 and L118) are deployed in different regions. 2 Battalions of MRLS are also listed as part of RMAs inventory, the first with 36 122mm BM-21 and the second with 36 300mm AR2.

Moroccan Anti-Aircraft Warfare have been based basically on Self Propelled Air Defense Systems, waiting the arrival of MIM-23 Hawk XXI HIMAD SAM. In its inventory we find 72 MIM-72 Chaparral, 12 Tunguska M1, 90 ZSU-23-4 and 115 M163 VADS, in addition of the K32 Strela-2 MANPADS. Other systems include AAG as M1939 (61-K), ZU-23-2 or M167 VADS, usually mounted on LUVs and CUCVs.

International projection
the Kingdom of Morocco is part of multiple international organisations, is a Major non-NATO ally, part of the Arab League, and has established military cooperations with different countries such as USA, Russia, Portugal, Tunisia, China, Qatar, Italy, France, Spain, UAE or Turkey. As part of the UN, Moroccan Army participed in different Peacekeeping missions. Moroccan troops were sent as part of SFOR, KFOR, MINUSTAH or the more recent UNSMIS in Syria. It has also responded the call of its allies, taking part of conflicts such as Shaba I, Battle of Mogadishu (1993), the Gulf War or the Operation Scorched Earth, among others. Morocco has dispatched several field hospitals to conflict zones and areas affected by natural disasters, the latest contributions were at Libyan civil war, the Syrian civil war. and in the Gaza strip after Operation Pillar of Defense

The Royal Moroccan Army also performs annual training exercise called "African Lion" with the United States Marine Corps. The exercise is a regularly scheduled, combined U.S. - Moroccan military exercise designed to promote improved interoperability and mutual understanding of each nation's tactics, techniques, procedures, unit readiness and enhancing foreign relations.

Morocco has also been the venue for Exercise "Jebel Sahara" since September 2002, gathering elements from 33 Squadron, 230 Squadron, 18 Squadron, 27 Squadron, Joint Helicopter Force HQ from RAF Benson, 1st Battalion Royal Gibraltar Regiment and 2nd Brigade d'Infanterie Parachutiste of the Royal Moroccan Army. The aim of the Exercise was to increase the Support Helicopter warfighting capability in desert ‘hot and high' conditions and foster good relations between the UK and Morocco. To achieve this, the scenario consisted of a joint counter insurgency operation in the desert and mountain foothills to re-establish control and authority within a troubled region of North Africa.

The Royal Gibraltar Regiment ran an exercise with the Moroccan 2e Brigade d'Infanterie Parachutiste (2e BIP) in late 2008.

The Royal Armed Forces also take part of different international exercises as Leapfest, Flintlock , Blue Sand , and occasional military operations exercises with Belgium, U.A.E., Spain, France and others.

Ranks
Militaires du rang / Enlisted Sous-officiers / non-commissioned officer Officiers subalternes / Junior officers Officiers supérieurs / Senior officers Généraux / General officers
 * Soldat de deuxième classe / Private)
 * Soldat de première classe / Private First Class
 * Caporal (infantry) or Brigadier (cavalry) / Lance corporal
 * Caporal-chef (infantry) or Brigadier-chef (cavalry) / Corporal
 * Eleve Sous-Officier / candidat at Officers School
 * Sergent / Sergeant
 * Sergent-chef / Staff Sergeant
 * Sergent-major / Sergeant First Class
 * Adjudant / Adjutant
 * Adjudant chef / Adjutant-chef
 * Eleve Officier Officer Cadet
 * Aspirant / Aspirant
 * Sous-lieutenant / Sub-lieutenant
 * Lieutenant / Lieutenant
 * Capitaine / Captain
 * Commandant / Commandant
 * Lieutenant-Colonel/ Lieutenant Colonel
 * Colonel / Colonel
 * Colonel Major / Major
 * Général de brigade / Brigade General
 * Général de division / Divisional General
 * Général de corps d'armée / Corps General
 * Général de l'armé et commandant en chef: Army General and Commander-in-chief Retained by His Majesty the King of Morocco.

Equipment
Sources are the INSS Israel's Middle East Military Balance, World Small Arms Inventory, SIPRI Trade registres and the The Military Balance in the Middle East by CSIS, Army-Guide.

Handguns

 * TT-33


 * MAB PA-15


 * MAC Mle 1950


 * Smith & Wesson Model 10


 * Beretta 92

Submachine guns

 * MP-5A3


 * M3


 * L2A3


 * MAT-49

Assault rifles

 * M16A1/A2/A4
 * M2
 * Steyr AUG A1/A2/A3


 * AK-74/ AKS-74U
 * AKM
 * AK-103


 * Type 56 assault rifle
 * Valmet M76


 * FN FAL
 * FN CAL


 * AR70/90
 * MAS-49/56


 * Beretta BM59
 * MAS-36


 * SAR 21
 * G3A3

Sniper rifles

 * M14NM/EBR


 * M82A1


 * FR-F2


 * PGM Ultima Ratio

Machine Guns

 * M249
 * Ultimax 100


 * PKM
 * PK


 * RPK-74
 * M60


 * RPD


 * FN Minimi


 * FALO-50-41


 * FN MAG


 * BM59 Mk IV


 * HK11A1

coaxial Machine Guns and Automatic cannons

 * M240 on M60A3TTS
 * NSV on T-72B
 * AA-52 on AMX-10 RC, VAB VCI and AML60/90
 * M73 on M60A3
 * M85 on M60A3
 * M2HB on Toyota Land Cruiser, M1025, M113A1/A2, AIFV B-C25/AIFV B-50 and VAB VTT
 * MG74 on SK-105 Kürassier
 * M1919A4 (Vektor MG4 CA) on Ratel IFV 20/90
 * M168 Vulcan on M163 VADS
 * M621 cannon on VAB VDAA TA20 and SA 341 Gazelle
 * M693 on VAB VCI/I Toucan I and Ratel IFV 20
 * M134 In use on helicopters
 * M60D In use on helicopters

Automatic grenade launchers

 * CIS 40 AGL

Mortars

 * M120


 * MO 60


 * M2


 * M30 mortar


 * M-43


 * MO-120-RT

Unguided Anti-tank weapons

 * RPG-7V
 * SPG-9


 * Type 69 RPG


 * LRAC 89


 * M72A3


 * M40 recoilless rifle


 * B-10 recoilless rifle

Anti-tank missiles

 * 9K11 Malyutka
 * 9M113 Konkurs


 * 9M133 Kornet
 * 9K115-2 Metis-M


 * M47 Dragon
 * MILAN


 * BGM-71 TOW


 * APILAS


 * Euromissile HOT


 * HJ8L

Utility vehicles