Moroccan Teen’s Trial for Alleged Royal Insult Postponed to March

Initially scheduled to start on Monday, January 20, 2020, the appeal trial of the 18-year-old high school student has been postponed to March 30, at the request of his lawyer, Lalla Hasnaa Alaoui. Now enjoying provisional release, Ayoub Mahfoud has been free since January 16.

Arrested in early December, Ayoub Mahfoud was accused of "insulting the person of the king, a public official in the exercise of his duties, as well as the constituted bodies", in accordance with Articles 179, 263 and 265 of the Penal Code, for having reposted in a Facebook status, words extracted from the title 3acha cha3b (long live the people) by the rappers Weld L’Griya, Lz3e and L’Gnawi, targeting the person of the king, according to the text of his judgment.

The same document also pointed out that the words in question were accompanied by a photograph deemed "outrageous", also referring to the person of the sovereign.

The young boy had been sentenced on December 17 last to three years in prison and a fine of 5,000 dirhams by the court of first instance of Meknes.