Calls for restraint from the "Gen Z 212" collective, the group behind the protests that have rocked Morocco for the past four days, were not enough. On the evening of Tuesday, September 30, a young man was seriously injured in the city of Oujda, in the country's east, after being hit by a law enforcement van. A viral video was shared on social media platforms showing the blue van speeding across a city square with its lights flashing, before striking a protester head-on, running him over and then driving away.

Other violent scenes continued late into the night, marring demonstrations held in several towns and cities across Morocco. In Inezgane, a suburb of Agadir, dozens of young people clashed with security forces, throwing projectiles and setting a pharmacy alight, while cars were tipped over in the nearby city of Ait Amira. Other videos showed clashes, burnt-out vehicles and looted businesses elsewhere in the country.

At around 1 am, former prime minister and current leader of the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD, opposition), Abdelilah Benkirane, urged the movement's organizers to end the protests "before tipping over into the unknown." On Sunday, he said he was following the movement "with deep concern," all while holding "the government responsible for the deterioration of social conditions."

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