Moroccan Historian Maâti Monjib Sentenced to 1 Year in Prison for Security Charges

Since his pre-trial detention on December 29, the university professor has received several messages of support from international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International. The latest one dates back to January 27, when the kingdom was called upon to drop all charges against him.

Six other journalists and human rights activists were prosecuted in this case opened in November 2015. The judge handed down a similar sentence against Hicham Khribichi, Abdessamad Ait Aicha, and Hicham Mansouri. As for Mohamed Sabr, he was sentenced to 3 months in prison with a suspended sentence and a fine of 5,000 dirhams, while Maria Moukrim and Rachid Tarik must pay a simple fine of 5,000 dirhams.

Born in 1960, Maâti Monjib is a professor at the University of Rabat and president of Freedom Now, an association created in 2014 that denounces attacks on press freedom. Banned from leaving the national territory, he launched a hunger strike in 2015 to protest against the authorities who prevented him from attending international conferences.