Morocco rescuers close in on boy trapped for days in well

The drama, now in its fourth day, has held residents of the North African kingdom spellbound. It has even drawn sympathy in neighbouring Algeria, a regional rival whose political ties with Morocco are strained.

Rescuers were able to send the child oxygen and water via pipes, but they still don't know whether he is alive.

At least five earth-movers have excavated red soil surrounding the well, making the landscape surrounding it resemble a construction site, against a backdrop of green hills in the rural northern province of Chefchaouen.

AFP saw the machines working under floodlights throughout the night into Friday, to clear the area around the 32-metre (35 yards) deep well in the village near Bab Berred.

Local authorities said the heavy equipment had excavated down 28 metres and preparations were being made to dig a horizontal breach in the direction of the well to reach Rayan.

But they said there is a risk of a landslide. The operation is complex because of the nature of the soil, some of which is sandy while other parts are rocky.

Rayan accidentally fell into the narrow, dried-out well near his family's home on Tuesday.