9:01AM Tuesday June 12, 2007
The Moroccan government has pledged to support Gerry and Kate McCann's search for missing daughter Madeleine. Photo / Reuters
RABAT - The parents of missing British girl Madeleine McCann said on Monday they won support from the Moroccan government in their search for their four-year-old daughter, more than a month after she disappeared from Portugal.
Gerry and Kate McCann met top government officials including Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa and the police chief when they took their high-profile campaign to Morocco.
"Kate and I believe, after the meetings today with officials from the government in Morocco and non-government organisations, that if Madeleine is here in Morocco, then she will be found," Gerry told a news conference.
The McCanns, who have met Pope Benedict to publicise their appeal and travelled to Spain, Berlin and Amsterdam to meet tourists who may have seen Madeleine during their holidays in Portugal, still knew nothing about their daughter's fate.
"Despite a large investigation, we are still very uncertain about who has taken her, what the motive is and where they have gone," Gerry said. Madeleine was snatched from the McCanns' holiday apartment in southern Portugal while they ate at a restaurant only 100 metres away. The parents have taken their campaign to find Madeleine outside Portugal because they have no firm evidence that their daughter is still there.
Gerry said he suspected Madeleine might have been brought to Morocco via Spain because, he says, border police were not alerted to her disappearance until 12 hours after she went missing -- enough time to move the girl across the two borders.Several ferries a day leave Tarifa in Spain on the short crossing to Tangiers.
Security officials in Rabat said they had no evidence that Madeleine was brought to Morocco beyond an unconfirmed report by a European tourist, who said she might have seen a girl bearing some resemblance to her in Marrakech.
The parents leave Morocco for home late on Monday for a "bit of reflection" before resuming their campaign. "We have no idea other than finding Madeleine," Gerry added.
