Prince Moulay Rachid of Morocco

Prince Moulay Rachid of Morocco, also known as Prince Moulay Rachid ben al-Hassan, GCVO, (Arabic: الأمير مولاي رشيد بن الحسن‎‎) was born on 20 June 1970 in Rabat as the youngest male child of the late King Hassan II and his second wife, Lalla Latifa Hammou. He holds a doctorate in international politics and serves Morocco as a diplomat. He is currently second in the line of succession to the Moroccan throne.

After primary and secondary studies at the Royal College in Rabat and obtaining the Baccalauréat in June 1989, he entered Mohammed V University in Rabat to start his higher studies in Law. In May 1993, Prince Moulay Rachid obtained his Bachelor of Law (LL.B.) majoring in economic and social law. The same year the Prince received his License to Practice Law – Public Law with the mention “very good”. On 29 June 1995, the Prince completed his graduate studies and received a Master of Law (LL.M.) in Political Science, with mention “very good”. The Bosnia question was the subject of his research and the thesis that the Prince presented and supported publicly. In order to complete his training for his postgraduate education, in November 1993, the Prince started an internship with the United Nations in New York. On 18 May 2001, the Prince presented his doctorate thesis on the Organisation of the Islamic Conference at the Université Montesquieu-Bordeaux IV, which merited a specific mention for the quality of his work. On 21 June 1996, the Prince successfully completed the written and oral tests for his postgraduate education and received a postgraduate Degree in International Relations, with mention “very good”.

In addition to his native language Arabic, the Prince speaks English, French, and Spanish.

In July 1994, Prince Moulay Rachid was promoted to the rank of Colonel in the Royal Moroccan Navy. In July 2000, Prince Moulay Rachid was promoted to the rank of brigadier general.

• Since April 1997, Prince Moulay Rachid has been president of the National Federation of Moroccan Scouting.
• Prince Moulay Rachid an amateur of golf and has represented Morocco professionally. In 2000, he founded the Hassan II Golf Trophy Association, which is hosting the Hassan II Golf Trophy.
• In 2001 Prince Moulay Rachid initiated the Marrakech International Film Festival Foundation (MIFFF) and Marrakech International Film Festival.
• He is the president of the Royal Moroccan Federation for Hunting Shotgun Shooting.

Prince Moulay Rachid is also the honorary president of:

• Grand Heart Association (2006)
• Moroccan Falconers Association Al-Noubala (2007)
• Royal Moroccan Yachting Federation
• Royal Moroccan Skiing and Mountaineering Federation
• Moroccan Environmental Protection Association, Moroccan – Far East Association
• Spanish Social Service Association, Maghreb Association for Research and the Fight Against AIDS
• Moroccan Association of Law Students in France

Prince Moulay Rachid is the second son and fifth child of King Hassan II and his wife, Lalla Latifa Hammou. Prince Moulay Rachid has one older brother, King Mohammed VI, and three sisters, Princess Lalla Meryem, Princess Lalla Asma and Princess Lalla Hasna.

In 1999, after the death of his father and the enthronement of his brother King Mohammed VI, the prince became crown prince, but in 2002, this position to his newborn nephew Moulay Hassan. The Prince is now a second in line to the throne.

In 1999, a few analysts like Nicolas Beau and Catherine Graciet argued that Prince Moulay Rachid might be better suited for the job of the king than his brother Mohammed VI. They expressed their concern that Mohammed VI might not have adequate expertise to deal with the Islamists.

On 5 February 2008, Fouad Mourtada was arrested on suspicion of stealing the identity of Prince Moulay Rachid by creating a fake profile on Facebook as a joke. Although Prince Moulay Rachid did not seek to press charges, on 23 February, Fouad Mourtada was sentenced to three years in jail and fined 10,000 dirhams (~1,350 USD). After local protests and international criticism, Fouad Mourtada was granted a royal pardon on 19 March 2008 just days before an appeal hearing.

On 15 June 2014, he married Oum Kalthum Boufarès (born 1987). She is daughter of Moulay El Mamoun Boufarès, former Minister of Interior, and maternal granddaughter of Lalla Khadija (a cousin of Mohammed V). On 23 June 2016 their first child, a son, Moulay Ahmed was born.

• His Highness Prince Moulay Ahmed (born on (2016-06-23)23 June 2016) (age &&&&&&&&&&&&033210 months 28 days).

National honours

• Knight Grand Cordon of the Order of the Throne

Foreign honours

• Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (United Kingdom, 14 July 1987).
• Knight Grand Collar of the Order of Civil Merit (Kingdom of Spain, 22 September 1989).
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Italian Republic, 18 March 1997).
• Knight Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit (French Republic).
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold II (Kingdom of Belgium, 5 October 2004).
• Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Aztec Eagle (United Mexican States, 11 February 2005).
• Member I Class of the Order of Excellence (Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 19/07/2003).
• Member I Class of the Order of King Abdulaziz (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia).