Morocco Demands France Return Seized Documents of Rif War Hero El Khattabi

The CNDH, through the Moroccan diplomatic services, has addressed a letter to the director of the Diplomatic Archives at the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs in France, to demand "the restitution of the original documents seized by the French troops in 1926", the year when Ben Abdelkrim El Khattabi surrendered to the French army as a prisoner of war.

"The CNDH and the Moroccan Archives Institution are carrying out joint actions and initiatives for the consolidation and preservation of the Moroccan archival heritage, particularly within the Unit for the Preservation of Memory and Promotion of Moroccan History in its various tributaries," said the President of the Council in a statement, affirming that "the enhancement of Moroccan archives and the preservation of the collective memory constitute a structuring axis of the action" of her organization.

"The national archives, in addition to their symbolic value, are of crucial importance in the consolidation of the rule of law and in the reading of historical events, particularly with regard to the present time of our history," it is specified. The official hopes that a "favorable response" will be given "to the request made" by the two Moroccan institutions.