Rabat – Morocco has not yet issued a new consular pass to allow Imam Hassan Iquioussen to enter its territory, considering a previous request has expired due to court proceedings in August.
Moroccan news outlet L360 quoted a diplomatic source, who emphasized that a letter from Morocco’s consular services was sent to the French authorities. The source said the letter states that the previous consular pass for Iquioussen’s expulsion to the North African country was no longer valid,” due to the decision of a Paris administrative court to suspend Iquioussen’s expulsion.
The French court ruled against Iquioussen’s expulsion from France, his birth country in August, before the country’s Council of State this week reversed the judicial decision.
Following the decision, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said he would appeal the court decision as part of his determination to fight against “those who make and disseminate comments of an anti-semitic nature and contrary to equality between men and women.”
Following Darmanin’s appeal, France State of Council – the highest administrative court in the European country – gave permission on August 30 to expel the Moroccan imam.
Security services, however, have not been able to identify the location of Iquioussen yet.
The imam’s son, Soufiane, said he did not hear from his father for several weeks.
“A few weeks ago, he decided to distance himself, to go and rest a little. He left his phone at home. The whole family is still in shock… We do not understand what is happening,” Soufiane told the RMC news channel on Wednesday.
Condemning the expulsion order against his father, Soufian said that the French system paints the situation as if they are looking for a “terrorist.”
“He has never been convicted for all the remarks he is accused of, nor brought to justice. Today, he has not committed any misdemeanor or crime, especially since his country is France. We didn’t think they would get that far, it’s difficult,” he said.
Several NGOs condemned France’s approach against the imam, criticizing the violation of his freedom of speech.
“There is a clear principle in a secular and democratic society: the only limits to freedom of expression are the possibility for others to exercise the same freedom, and public order. This principle must be respected,” the League for Human Rights (LDH) said in response to Darmanin’s accusations and expulsion order in August.
The Moroccan imam was born in France to Moroccan parents in 1964 in Denain, in northeastern France.
