The Moroccan occupation authorities freed three Saharawi political prisoners from the occupied city of Dakhla on the morning of 2nd October. The group consists of the human rights defenders Mahayub Ulad Che, Kamal Treyeh and Mohammed Manolo who report that they have been under surveillance from the Morrocan Intelligence Service since their release. On 3rd October, in the early hours of the morning, the Moroccan Occupation Authorities also freed the Saharawi political prisoner Abdelaziz Barray in Dakhla who had also been in prison for three years.

Abdelaziz Barray is a member of the Saharawi Association Against Torture. He and the three other prisoners were detained in October 2011 (together with Hassana El Wali) for confronting Moroccan settlers on behalf of Saharawis who were defending their properties against the aggression committed by the settlers.

In addition, the student Hamza Tamek has also been freed. He was detained on 2nd October 2013 in the city of Gulemim (Southern Morocco) and sentenced to a year in prison for participating in demonstrations started by Saharawis of Gulemim in solidarity with Saharawis in Azza and Zak who had been brutally repressed by the Moroccan authorities, according to family members speaking to AdalaUK.

These releases coincide with the tragic death of the activist Hassana El Wali in the military hospital of Dakhla where his family has refused to release his body for burial until the authorities agree to conduct a full investigation into the causes of his death and prosecute those responsible. On 1st October his body was taken from the hospital in Dakhla to an unknown location and buried without the consent of his family, according to sources at the hospital.

 

 

 

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