RABAT, Feb 22 (Reuters) – Morocco has summoned the French
ambassador in Rabat to protest against a French lawsuit filed
against the head of Morocco’s domestic intelligence for alleged
complicity in torture, the foreign ministry said on Saturday.
It was a rare diplomatic spat between France and Morocco, a
former French colony and strong ally of Paris which has faced
criticism from rights groups over police abuses, press freedom
and judicial independence.
The lawsuit filed by Moroccan activists in France accuses
the Moroccan intelligence service, known by its French acronym
DST, of torturing them while in detention in Morocco.
During a visit by DST chief Abdellatif Hammouchi to France
this week, French police officers went to the Moroccan embassy
to ask about him, the Moroccan statement said.
“It is a serious and unprecedented incident regarding the
relationship between the two countries which could affect the
climate of confidence and mutual respect between Morocco and
France,” the statement said.
The Moroccan ambassador in Paris told the state news agency
MAP that Moroccan authorities heard about the lawsuit via the
French press.
The French Foreign Ministry said in a statement an
investigation had been opened to shed light on the “regrettable”
incident, without giving more details.
In 2012, the United Nations said torture against people
suspected of national security crimes in Morocco was systematic
and urged the country to quickly end ill treatment in its
prisons and police detention centres.
U.S.-based Human Rights Watch has urged Morocco to
investigate accusations that police tortured pro-democracy
activists to force false confessions.
(Reporting by Aziz El Yaakoubi; editing by Patrick Markey and
Andrew Roche)
