Spanish Resident Jailed in Morocco for Sharing Rif Protest Videos on Facebook

Zouhir Ainaaissa, 35, a resident of Montesquiu (Barcelona), shared some videos of the Rif protests that occurred in the spring of 2017 on his Facebook profile in 2018. The young man was arrested four years later as he was arriving in Nador with his wife Fatima and their two daughters aged 5 and 3 to spend his summer vacation. Zouhir was arrested on the night of August 8, 2022 and placed in custody without explanation. The Moroccan authorities had issued an arrest warrant against him for sharing this information, reports El Pais.

"Zouhir shared these videos in Spain, but the Moroccan Penal Code allows the prosecution of criminal acts committed outside the country under a single formula, that of an attack on national security," explains Marc Serra, Zouhir’s lawyer, who has been trying since February to obtain his extradition so that he can serve the rest of his sentence in Spain. The young man has already spent 14 months in the Mohammedia prison, even though he was sentenced in first instance and on appeal to two years in prison and a fine of 10,000 dirhams (about 1,000 euros) for insulting the flag and symbols of the Kingdom and inciting such acts by electronic means.

The extradition procedure is very complicated and takes a long time. "We are totally unaware of the progress of the procedure. He meets the conditions, because he has Spanish nationality and has paid the fine. But it seems that the public prosecutor has not yet made a decision. We are not making any progress," laments the lawyer who has also requested the provisional release of his client.

From his prison cell, where security measures are more relaxed, Zouhir can barely communicate with his family. He has the support of a brother living in Morocco, but cannot receive letters from his wife or drawings from his daughters. This week, Fatima was able to see him for the third time since his incarceration. "I saw him in good health. He is doing well. The visits are short and somewhat disappointing because, unlike in Spain, there is no visiting room," she complains.