More than 20 others were wounded, some seriously, when the blast ripped through the Argana cafe in Djemaa el-Fna square, a popular tourist spot.

Nationalities of the foreign victims have not been confirmed, but medical sources say at least six are French.

A Marrakesh official said a suicide bomber could have caused the blast.

No group has so far said it carried out the attack.

The UK Foreign Office is investigating reports one of the victims was British.

Some earlier reports had put the death toll at 15.

The last serious attack in Morocco was in Casablanca in 2003, when 45 people - including suicide bombers - were killed.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy branded the attack "heinous, cruel and cowardly", his office sad.

Mr Sarkozy spoke by telephone to King Mohammed IV, who ordered a "speedy and transparent inquiry" when he chaired a council of ministers at the royal palace in Fes.

Moroccan Interior Minister Taib Cherkaoui would not confirm reports of a suicide bombing but added: "I can assure you that we continue to fight terrorism with all legal means. The criminals implicated in this act will be brought to justice."