The New Arab
The 25 accused were handed sentences ranging from 20 years to life in 2013 [AFP]
Retrial of Sahrawis accused of killing Moroccan security forces resumes three years after the accused were handed hefty sentences in a trial described as ‘unfair’.
A Moroccan court on Monday resumed the trial of of 25 Sahrawis accused of killing 13 people, mostly security forces, in the contested Western Sahara’s Gdeim Izik camp in November 2010.
The killings are alleged to have occurred as Moroccan security forces cleared the camp near the city of Laayoune after a riot had broken out.
Outside the court of appeal in Sale, near the capital Rabat, supporters of the defendants and victims exchanged slogans, separated by a line of police.
“No to impunity for killers!” shouted dozens of victims’ relatives, waving Moroccan flags and pictures of soldiers killed.
“Freedom for political prisoners!” shouted a crowd of Sahrawi activists.
Inside the courtroom, a giant screen broadcasting of the hearing played for the security forces, lawyers, victims’ relatives and reporters present.
A military court sentenced all of the defendants in 2013 to a range of punishments, ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment.
International observers and NGOs, however, slammed the trial as “unfair,” causing the court of cassation in July to order a new trial in a civilian court.
On Monday, defence lawyers expressed their lack of faith in the new trial.
The trial “is taking place in very unfair conditions, but we remain at the defendants’ side”, they said.
Ahmed Atertour, president of an association for families and friends of the victims, said he had “confidence in Moroccan justice to commemorate the memory of our… martyrs”.
Morocco says Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony under its control, is an integral part of the kingdom.
The Algeria-backed Polisario Front, meanwhile, demands a referendum on self-determination for the territory.
