The Moroccan army (1300 LR, 400 HR, 2000 PI, 3600 SI, 2000 LC, 40 SW) packs up their camp after several months of diligent combat practice and moves east from Al Hoceima in the first days of March, circling slightly to the south to stay away from Melilla by about 50 miles, and moves on towards Beni Snassen territory.

The army is led by Abd al Jabbar al-Iznassen, a Riffian general in the Sultan's army, battle-hardened and proven in the volatile latter half of the previous century, with a long history of serving under the preceding Wattasids. Having been born to a father from the Khaled tribe of the Snassen confederation, Abd al Jabbar has some knowledge of their power structures as well as the eastern parts of the Snassen territories.

The army's supported by a supply train leading back to core Maghrib Riffian lands and Fes, choosing to avoid pillaging of the locals so soon after the Alboran wave.