Morocco opens 35th Africa Cup of Nations with spectacular light show

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Excited red-and-green clad fans made their way to the stadium hours before kickoff as Morocco opened the 35th Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday.

The party started the night before with a parade of fans through the capital city, Rabat. Wintry showers failed to spoil the mood. Beninese artist Angélique Kidjo, Moroccan singer Jaylann and French-Moroccan rapper Lartiste performed the tournament’s official song for the first time Sunday during a spectacular light show for the opening ceremony.

“This will be the best ever Africa Cup of Nations!” FIFA president Gianni Infantino proclaimed in French while standing beside a portrait of Moroccan king Mohammed VI.

The Atlas Lions, as the home team is known, are among the favorites to lift what would be just their second Africa Cup title 50 years after their only success in 1976. The final is Jan. 18 next year.

They begin their campaign against island nation Comoros, a team ranked 108th in the world and making its second appearance in the competition.

“It's a superb match, an extraordinary occasion to get to know our team, our country,” Comoros coach Stefano Cusin said. “It's going to be a great evening of football.”

No host has lost the opening match of the tournament since Burkina Faso in 1998.

Morocco is the highest-ranked African team at No. 11. The Atlas Lions became the first African team to reach the World Cup semifinals in 2022, and the country has embarked on one of the most aggressive infrastructure buildouts in African sporting history to establish itself as a soccer power. The Kingdom is also set to be a co-host of the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal.

The opening match was to be played in Rabat’s renovated near 70,000-capacity Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, one of nine venues across six cities that were constructed or renovated for the tournament.

Morocco captain Achraf Hakimi was named among the substitutes after recovering from an ankle injury. He showed his African Footballer of the Year trophy to fans before the opening game's kickoff.

The mascot for the tournament is a lion named Assad, inspired by the barbary lions that once prowled the mountains of north Africa. The last known photograph of a wild lion in Morocco was taken by French army photographer Marcelin Flandrin from a flight over the Atlas Mountains in 1925.

Egypt was to begin its bid for a record-extending eighth title – and Mohamed Salah’s first – against Zimbabwe in Agadir on Monday. Defending champion Ivory Coast begins its title defense against Mozambique in Marrakech on Wednesday. Senegal and five-time champion Cameroon are also among the favorites, while Algeria is the only other country apart from Morocco to have all its matches sold out.

The future of the biennial tournament took a twist Saturday with the announcement it will move to a four-year cycle to bring it in line with the FIFA calendar.

AP at the Africa Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-cup-of-nations

A Morocco fan waits for the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Africa Cup of Nations and the opening group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

A Moroccan fan cheers before the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Moulay Hassan, Crown Prince of Morocco, waves while FIFA President Gianni Infantino applauds before the Africa Cup of Nations group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

Performers take part in the opening ceremony of the Africa Cup of Nations and the opening group A soccer match between Morocco and Comoros in Rabat, Morocco, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

People dressed as mascots take part in a parade celebrating the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations soccer competition, in Rabat, Morocco, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy)

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on Sunday defended the Justice Department’s decision to release just a fraction of the Jeffrey Epstein files by the congressionally mandated deadline as necessary to protect survivors of sexual abuse by the disgraced financier.

Blanche pledged that the Trump administration eventually would meet its obligation required by law. But he stressed that the department was obligated to act with caution as it goes about making public thousands of documents that can include sensitive information.

Friday's partial release of the Epstein files has led to a new crush of criticism from Democrats who have accused the Republican administration of trying to hide information.

Blanche called that pushback disingenuous as President Donald Trump's administration continues to struggle with calls for greater transparency, including from members of his political base, about the government’s investigations into Epstein, who once counted Trump as well as several political leaders and business titans among his peers.

“The reason why we are still reviewing documents and still continuing our process is simply that to protect victims,” Blanche told NBC's "Meet the Press." “So the same individuals that are out there complaining about the lack of documents that were produced on Friday are the same individuals who apparently don’t want us to protect victims.”

Blanche's comments were the most extensive by the administration since the file dump, which included photographs, interview transcripts, call logs, court records and other documents. But some of the most consequential records expected about Epstein were nowhere to be found, such as FBI interviews with survivors and internal Justice Department memos examining charging decisions. Those records could help explain how investigators viewed the case and why Epstein was allowed in 2008 to plead guilty to a relatively minor state-level prostitution charge.

Trump, who was friends with Epstein for years before the two had a falling-out, tried for months to keep the records sealed. Though Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, he has argued there is nothing to see in the files and that the public should focus on other issues.

Federal prosecutors in New York brought sex trafficking charges against Epstein in 2019, but he killed himself in jail after his arrest.

But Democratic lawmakers on Sunday hammered Trump and the Justice Department for a partial release.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., argued that the Justice Department is obstructing the implementation of the law mandating the release of the documents not because it wants to protect the Epstein victims.

“It’s all about covering up things that, for whatever reason, Donald Trump doesn’t want to go public, either about himself, other members of his family, friends, Jeffrey Epstein, or just the social, business, cultural network that he was involved in for at least a decade, if not longer," he said on CNN's “State of the Union.”

Blanche also defended the department's decision to remove several files related to the case from its public webpage, including a photograph showing Trump, less than a day after they were posted.

The missing files, which were available Friday but no longer accessible by Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one showed a series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers. In that image, inside a drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump, alongside Epstein, Melania Trump and Epstein’s longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Blanche said the documents were removed because they also showed victims of Epstein. Blanche said that Trump photo and the other documents will be reposted once redactions are made to protect survivors.

“It has nothing to do with President Trump,” Blanche said. “There are dozens of photos of President Trump already released to the public seeing him with Mr. Epstein.”

The thousands of Epstein-related records posted publicly offer the most detailed look yet at nearly two decades worth of government scrutiny of Epstein’s sexual abuse of young women and underage girls. Yet Friday's release, replete with redactions, has not dulled the clamor for information given how many records had yet to be released and because some of the materials had already been made public.

Blanche said that the department continues to review the trove of documents and has learned the names of additional potential victims in recent days.

The deputy attorney general also defended the decision by the federal Bureau of Prisons, which Blanche oversees, to transfer Maxwell to a less restrictive, minimum-security federal prison earlier this year soon after he interviewed her about Epstein. Blanche said that the transfer was made because of concerns about her safety.

Maxwell, Epstein's onetime girlfriend, is serving a 20-year federal prison sentence for her 2021 conviction for sex trafficking crimes.

“She was suffering numerous and numerous threats against her life,” Blanche said. “So the BOP is not only responsible for putting people in jail and making sure they stay in jail, but also for their safety.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., have indicated they could draft articles of impeachment against Attorney General Pam Bondi for what they see as the gross failure of the department to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

“It’s not about the timeline, it’s about the selective concealment,” Khanna said on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” adding that the redactions in the released files are excessive. He said he believes there will be "bipartisan support in holding her accountable, and a committee of Congress should determine whether these redactions are justified or not."

House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York said on ABC's “This Week” that there needs “to be a full and complete explanation and then a full and complete investigation as to why the document production has fallen short of what the law clearly required,” but he stopped short of backing impeachment.

Blanche dismissed the impeachment talk.

“Bring it on,” Blanche said. “We are doing everything we’re supposed to be doing to comply with this statute.”

Gómez Licón reported from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

FILE - Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche speaks during an event with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Oct. 15, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell, file)