Articles for Morocco

Alkarama has just been informed that both Younes Zarli and Said Ezziouani are being held at Salé prison. While in custody they were held in incommunicado detention and subjected to torture, before ever receiving their indictments.

During the last two months Alkarama submitted the cases of eight individual disappearances to the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID). The disappearances and connected to the so-called "fight against terrorism". In the last several months, the Moroccan authorities have launched several waves of arrests, during which many people have been held in secret detention.

Alkarama received information that the individuals listed below reappeared following a court appearance on 6 May 2010.

On 1 May 2010, two engineering students, Mohamed Boutarfas, 22, and Zouhair Benkassou, 23, were abducted from their homes by plain clothed intelligence officers in Rabat and taken to an unknown destination. They are now disappeared and it is feared that they are held incommunicado and exposed to torture.

Alkarama sent their case to the Special Rapporteur against Torture on 7 May 2010, requesting his intervention with the Moroccan authorities to ensure that both men are put under the protection of the law.

Over the past several weeks, the Moroccan authorities have been carrying out a strategy of enforced disappearances, which continues to claims victims as the waves of arrests persists. Condemnation from the UN and human rights NGOs has done little to impede the Moroccan authorities.

Mahmi Maliani, a 22 year-old Engineering student from Casablanca, was abducted on the morning of 19 March 2010 by security services officers while on his way to the local mosque for Friday prayers and has since disappeared. Numerous bystanders witnessed his kidnapping.

Khalid Etefia, who lives in France, was arrested by the Moroccan authorities on 8 February 2010 after arriving in Morocco, where he had planned to visit his wife Doha Aboutabit who has been detained since 3 December 2009. Both are currently held inside Salé prison.

At 3am on 8 February 2010, Khalid Etefia was arrested in his hotel room in Rabat. On the same day, he was brought before the investigating judge of Rabat's Court of Appeals and sent to Salé prison. The couple, although detained inside the same prison, has been unable to see each other.

On the morning of 3 December 2009, Doha Aboutabit, a 25 year-old doctor of dual French-Moroccan nationality, was arrested by four police officers at her parents' home in Rabat. She was immediately take to Al-Maarif police in Casablanca. During her detention she was psychologically tortured for 12 days and exposed to cruel treatment.

Younes Zarli and Said Ezziouani were allegedly abducted by officers of the Directorate of Territorial Surveillance (DST) on 11 and 12 April 2010 in Casablanca and have since vanished.

At 1pm on 11 April 2010, a plain clothed security officer, posing a someone else, asked Younes Zarli to come down from his apartment and join him downstairs in front of his building. He has since disappeared following the incident. Younes Zarli, 29, lives with his family in Casablanca and is married with a child.

On 29 March 2010, Adnan Zakhbat was abducted by four plain clothed security officers outside Zahra Mosque and taken to an unknown destination. He has since disappeared. Following his disappearance, the Moroccan authorities have refused to acknowledge his arrest and his family has been left without any recourse in their efforts to locate him.

Adnan Zakhbat, 27, lives in Berrechid, a small town 70km south of Casablanca and is a married father of two.

On 30 March 2010, 21 year-old Abdelrahim Lahjouli, a resident of Casablanca, was abducted from his home by anonymous gang of six individuals who presented themselves as police officers. Following his abduction he was taken to an unknown destination and has since disappeared.

Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the Working Group on Enforced Disappearances (WGEID) on 8 April 2010 requesting their intervention with the Moroccan authorities.

Otman Babi, who was disappeared by security services officers after his arrest on 10 March 2010, has reappeared after being transferred to Salé and then appeared before the Investigating Judge at Rabat's Court of Appeals on 22 March 2010.

On 22 March 2010, Alkarama submitted Otman Babi's case as an urgent appeal to the Working Group on Enforced Disappearances (WGEID) requesting its intervention with the Moroccan authorities.