In a new development regarding the situation in Western Sahara, the Court of Appeal in Agadir issued a two-year prison sentence on Monday for Sahrawi students Hussein Bourkba (23) and Ayman El Yathribi (22). The sentence follows charges of unlawful assembly, assault on civil rights protesters, theft, and physical assault, along with other criminal and political charges.
This ruling is part of a prolonged trial process, as the Court of First Instance had previously sentenced the two students to ten years in prison in June 2024. However, the court was unable to present any credible evidence supporting the charges against them, as witnesses testified in court that they did not recognize the accused, contradicting their earlier statements in police records that had been used as the basis for the convictions.
In a statement, a member of the Administrative Committee of the Sahrawi Human Rights Defenders Group described these rulings as a “tax” on the political and trade union stances that Sahrawi activists continue to defend against repression. He called for the release of all Sahrawi political prisoners currently in Moroccan jails.
It is worth noting that Ayman El Yathribi, aged 22, was arrested on January 23, 2024, in the university district of Agadir, while Hussein Bourkba was arrested on March 12, 2024, in a café in the Al-Huda neighborhood near the campus of Ibn Zohr University. Both students were subjected to ill-treatment during their detention and went on multiple hunger strikes in protest of their harsh conditions.
This ruling highlights the increasing repression faced by Sahrawi activists and once again draws attention to the suffering endured by human rights defenders in Western Sahara. Calls for the release of Sahrawi political prisoners are growing, as international human rights organizations and activists urge the Moroccan authorities to end these unjust trials.
Political trial, prison sentence, human rights, Sahrawi activists, Agadir, Moroccan jails, Hussein Bourkba, Ayman El Yathribi, Western Sahara, political repression.
