Moroccan rights group raises concern over jailed Western Sahara activist

A Moroccan rights group has raised concern about the health of Naama Asfari, a jailed Western Sahara independence activist who has reportedly been on hunger strike for more than 40 days while demanding his release.

The Moroccan Association for Human Rights said in a statement on Tuesday night that it was following Asfari's situation with great concern. The group said he began his hunger strike on June 8 and said his family was worried about what it described as a lack of information about his health and current location.

Prison authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The prison administration said earlier this month that Asfari was being monitored under procedures for inmates on hunger strike and described his condition as normal.

According to his defence team, Asfari is serving a 30-year sentence after being convicted of charges including criminal conspiracy and involvement in intentional killings. He was among 23 Sahrawi activists convicted over the deaths of 11 Moroccan security personnel during clashes in 2010 after authorities dismantled the Gdim Izik protest camp near Laayoune, the largest city in disputed Western Sahara.

The group was first tried by a military court in 2013 and then by a civilian court in 2017. International rights groups criticised the proceedings as unfair, a claim Moroccan authorities rejected.

Western Sahara, a mineral-rich former Spanish colony, has been largely controlled by Morocco since 1975 and is considered a non-self-governing territory by the United Nations. Morocco has long been in conflict with the Algerian-backed Polisario Front, which seeks independence for the Sahrawi people.