Morroco police to probe minaret collapse: agency

RABAT (Reuters) - Morocco's government ordered a police investigation into the collapse of a centuries-old mosque that left 41 people dead, state news agency MAP reported on Sunday.

The Lalla Khenata mosque's minaret collapsed in the old Bab el Bardiyine neighborhood of the imperial city of Meknes during Friday mass prayers, burying most of the 300 worshippers gathered there.

The state prosecutor visited the site after the collapse occurred and a special incident unit was set up by the prosecutor's office to simplify formal procedures for victims and their families, MAP said.

The investigation will "help preserve the interests of the victims," the agency cited the Justice Ministry as saying in a statement.

Neglected old buildings in the old quarters of Morocco's cities collapse fairly often but the fall of a minaret is rare.

The disaster sparked anger among residents, who alleged that the authorities had ignored warnings over the mosque's dilapidated state.

Central Meknes is listed as a world heritage site by the U.N.'s cultural body UNESCO.

(Writing by Lamine Chikhi, Editing by Tom Pfeiffer and Jon Boyle)