Referendums by country (a quarter of the population), cast ballots to become "sovereign and independent" of Ethiopia. This vote was the result of thirty years of war by Eritreans during their War of Independence. The result was a vote for independence by 99.8% of the voters. There have been several referendums in Morocco, most of which were related to the Moroccan constitution. Since becoming King, Mohammed VI has led many reforms that made Morocco an exception from all the other Arab countries. On February 20, 2011, thousands took to the streets of Rabat, Casablanca, Tangier and Marrakesh in peaceful protests demanding a new
Tangier Tanger-Ville railway station with Rabat, Casablanca and Marrakesh in the south, and with Fes and Oujda in the east. The service is operated by ONCF. In November 2018 Africa's first high-speed train, the Kenitra–Tangier high-speed rail line, was inaugurated, linking Tangier to Casablanca in 2 hours and 10. By 2020 improvements between Casablanca and Kenitra are planned to further reduce the journey to 1 hour and 30 minutes. The Rabat–Tangier expressway connects Tangier to Fès via Rabat , and Settat via Casablanca and Tanger-Med port. The Ibn Batouta International Airport (formerly known as Tangier-Boukhalef) is south-west of the city centre.