When France invaded Oujda, bombarded Casablanca, and invaded the Shawiya in 1907, al-Kattani called for jihad and the deportation of the colonists from the country and composed numerous letters calling for resistance against the occupiers. He also signed a letter addressed to the American ambassador at the American Legation in Tangier, urging the United States not to support Abdelaziz, who took a lax stance against the French occupiers.