A Moroccan activist, Rabie al-Ablaq, was sentenced Monday to four years in prison for “offending” King Mohammad VI on social networks, we learned from his defense. “The first instance court in al-Hoceima (North) sentenced Rabie al-Ablaq to four years in prison for insulting the king’s person by electronic means,” his lawyer Abdelmajid Azaryah told AFP. This 35-year-old citizen activist and journalist will also have to pay a fine of 20,000 dirhams (1,900 euros). His lawyer has announced his intention to appeal. Mr. a-Ablaq appeared free before the court in al-Hoceima, where his trial opened on 11 April. The accused was prosecuted for having published “videos criticizing social disparities and corruption, according to his lawyer. I was shocked by this verdict, because he (Mr. al-Ablaq) only expressed his opinion. I consider that he did not harm the (royal) institution”. In 2018, Rabie al-Ablaq was imprisoned and then sentenced to five years in prison for his participation in the protest movement that agitated the Moroccan region of Rif (North) in 2016-2017 before being pardoned by the king in 2020.
A Moroccan activist, Rabie al-Ablaq, was sentenced Monday to four years in prison for “offending” King Mohammad VI on social networks, we learned from his defense. “The first instance court of al-Hoceima (North) sentenced Rabie al-Ablaq to four years in prison for insulting the person of the king by way of…