Boy dies after stuck in well for five days

A small boy trapped in a well in northern Morocco for five days died before rescuers were able to reach him late on Saturday and retrieve his body, two government officials said.

Footage posted on social media showed the scene after his body was recovered, with hundreds of distraught rescue workers and onlookers gathered at the site chanting to god and shining the flashlights of their phones into the air.

Rayan Awram, 5, fell into the well at his village of Ighran in the hills near Chefchaouen on Tuesday, triggering a huge rescue effort that engrossed the country.

Rescuers finally reached him late on Saturday after removing much of the adjacent hillside and delicately tunneling a horizontal passage into the well.

King Mohammed sent condolences to his parents, a statement carried by state media reported.

The well was only 45 centimeters wide at the top and tapered as it dropped 32 meters to the bottom, where Rayan was trapped, making it impossible for rescuers to descend directly.

A male relative of the boy said on Friday that the family had first realized he was missing when they heard muffled crying and lowered a phone with its light and camera switched on to locate him.

"He was crying 'lift me up'," the relative said.

The hilly region around Chefchaouen is bitterly cold in winter and rescuers attempted to keep him alive by lowering food, water and oxygen through a tube.

Crowds had gathered in a vigil at the scene. Across the country, Moroccans followed the saga on television.

"I am so sad to learn Rayan has died. Sincere condolences to the parents," said Abderrahim Sabihi, a Rabat resident who was following the rescue from a cafe.