Ali_Aarrass_affair
Ali Aarrass affair
Moroccan-Belgian citizen imprisoned in Morocco on charges of terrorism
Ali Aarrass is Moroccan-Belgian citizen who was imprisoned in Morocco on charges of terrorism.[1][2]
He was first arrested in Spain in late 2008 and accused of arms smuggling but was acquitted of these charges there. However Spain extradited him to Morocco in December 2010.[3][4] According to reports, in addition to the unfair trial, Aarrass was subjected to torture and degrading treatment while imprisoned in Morocco.[4]
In November 2011, Abdelkader Chentouf the Moroccan anti-terrorism judge,[5] sentenced Aarrass to 12 years in prison on the basis of confessions obtained under torture. His imprisonment was the focus of a long campaign by human rights groups and other international NGOs, as well as the Belgium-based "Free Ali" committee.[6] He was released on 2 April 2020,[7] and was reunited with his sister in Melilla before being repatriated to Belgium.[6]