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The attacks were carried out by 14 members of the North Africa n terrorist group Salafia Jihadia . Their plan was to hit Western and Jewish targets in the bustling tourist city of Casablanca, and may have been inspired to carry out their attacks sooner than expected after 3 Western compounds were bombed in Saudi Arabia on May 12 .
The 14 bombers, most between 20 and 24 years old, struck several places on the night of the 16th. In the deadliest attack, bombers wearing explosives knifed a guard at the "Casa de España" restaurant, a Spanish -owned eatery in the city. They blew themselves up inside the building, killing 20 people, many of them dining and playing bingo .
The five-star Hotel Farah was bombed next, killing a guard and a porter. Another bomber killed three passerby as he attempted to bomb a Jewish cemetery . He was 150 yards away from the cemetery and likely lost, so he blew up by a fountain. Two additional bombers attacked a Jewish community center, but killed no one because the building was closed and empty. It would have been packed the next day.
Another bomber attacked a Jewish-owned Italian restaurant, and another blew up near the Belgian consulate which is located meters away from the restaurant, killing two police officers.
In all, 12 bombers died, along with 33 civilians. Two bombers were arrested before they could carry out attacks. More than 100 people were injured. Eight of the dead were Europeans (three Spaniards among them) and the rest were Moroccan , angering many Muslims.
Investigators concluded that inept planning and mistakes by the bombers probably saved dozens of lives.
The motive behind the bombings was probably the fact that Morocco had a history of good relationship with Jews; another possible motive was the US Invasion of Iraq .
World leaders condemned the attacks, coming on the heels of the Riyadh bombings. Mohammed VI , the King of Morocco, toured the bombing sites and was cheered by crowds of people. Moroccan authorities said in May 2004 that they had arrested 2,000 people in connection with the attacks, and began to put them on trial.
Salafia Jihadia, an offshoot of the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group and believed to have al-Qaeda links, is suspected of sending out the bombers. Evidence suggests that a terror leader in Iraq , Abu Musab al-Zarqawi , may have played a role. On March 19 , 2004 , Belgian police arrested a suspect wanted by the Moroccan government in connection with the bombings. In December 2004 , a man named Hasan al-Haski , charged in the 2004 Mardid bombings , was questioned over his links to the Casablanca bombings and was believed to have helped plan them.