France Awards Hammouchi with the Gold Grade of the Legion of Honor
The French Minister of Interior and Overseas Affairs has awarded the Gold Grade of the Legion of Honor, on an exceptional basis, to Mr. Abdellatif Hammouchi, Director General of National Security and the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance. The decision, signed by the French Interior Minister on June 20, 2024, was published in the Official Journal of Orders, Medals, and Awards on August 5th.
This decoration comes in recognition of the efforts made by Abdellatif Hammouchi in maintaining security and in security cooperation, which has reached a high level between the two countries. All French officials attest to the high competence of Moroccan security and intelligence, primarily the Director General, who has marked them with efficiency and seriousness. France has thoroughly tested Moroccan security, which is why it chose the Moroccan General Directorate of National Security to secure the Paris Olympic Games events recently organized.
Moroccan security, under Hammouchi’s leadership, has demonstrated great capabilities in securing international events. It suffices to say that France entrusted it with protecting French guests during this international event, particularly in one of the most dangerous specialties: confronting explosives, where a complete Moroccan team supervised this operation.
This is not the first time France has shown interest in Abdellatif Hammouchi and decorated him. He was previously decorated multiple times, including in 2011 with the Knight rank of the Legion of Honor for his efforts in combating organized crime and terrorist cells. France acknowledges that Moroccan security has spared it bloodbaths by providing proactive information leading to the dismantling of terrorist cells in their infancy before they could engage in killing and destruction.
In February 2015, during the French Interior Minister’s visit to Morocco after a period of stagnation, Hammouchi was awarded the National Order of the Legion of Honor for his tremendous efforts in establishing security and his openness to security cooperation with counterparts in other countries, including France.
The French Interior Minister’s decision published in the Official Journal to award the Gold Grade of the Legion of Honor is a recognition of Hammouchi’s capabilities and a culmination of a long history of relations between Moroccan and French security, as well as a summary of extensive cooperation experience between the two countries’ security services, which serve security in the entire region.
Abdellatif Hammouchi has led Moroccan security and intelligence with exceptional skill, making it a formidable player in regional and international equations. He has previously received recognition from major global security agencies, especially in the United States, giving Moroccan security international recognition and expertise in combating organized crime, transcontinental networks, terrorist cells, and securing international events such as the World Cup in Qatar, the World Bank and IMF International Conference, and the Olympic Games. This competence has earned Morocco the honor of hosting the upcoming Interpol conference.
