Rabat – Families of Moroccan migrants detained in Libya protested in Rabat, calling on Morocco’s government to help their relatives return home as soon as possible.
Protesters carried flags and a giant banner in front of Morocco’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rabat, calling on King Mohammed VI to intervene to help their family members return home.
“We demand that our children held in Libya be brought back to us,” one of the demonstrators told EFE.
The demonstrators traveled to Rabat from different cities across Morocco to participate in the protest.
In the past few years, thousands of Moroccans found themselves stranded and detained in detention centers in Libya.
The trapped Moroccans are among people who traveled to Libya hoping to reach Europe.
In late 2018 and 2017, videos and photos from detention centers went viral, with Moroccans calling on King Mohammed VI to intervene.
In November 2017, a video documented the inhuman situation of migrants stranded in a detention center in Zuwara prison.
In the video, a Moroccan citizen addressed a message to King Mohammed VI, calling on him to speed up the process of their repatriation.
“We would like you to please intervene as some of the inmates are suffering from chronic diseases due to lack of facilities and medical services,” says the man in the video.
The calls prompted a response from the Moroccan government, who ordered the repatriation of hundreds of migrants gradually.
EFE reported that Morocco repatriated a group of 773 migrants who were trapped or detained in Libya.
Many families of Moroccan migrants missing or detained in Libya held protests in recent years, calling on Rabat to repatriate their relatives.
