Marrakech – The Spanish National Court has rejected an asylum application from a Moroccan citizen who allegedly faced persecution in his homeland for not practicing Islam.
According to the international Argentine online newspaper Infobae, the court upheld a previous decision by the Spanish Ministry of Interior that had dismissed both his initial request and subsequent appeal for international protection.
The man, who was detained at the Foreigners Internment Center (CIE) in Madrid, claimed he had been attacked in Morocco for not practicing Islam. In his testimony, he stated that he “knows nothing about Islam, is not a practitioner, does not fast, and did not feel adapted” to his environment.
He reported suffering assaults both in Morocco and in Spain, specifically in Bilbao, for not fasting. The applicant also mentioned that he had filed complaints about these incidents in Morocco and that some of his attackers were now in Spain, while one had been imprisoned in Morocco.
Despite these claims, the Moroccan citizen admitted having no problems with Moroccan authorities. However, he expressed feeling insecure and afraid of Muslims in his country. Court records showed he had been expelled from Spain in 2017 with a five-year re-entry ban, and had been detained multiple times for violations of immigration law and minor crimes.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) played a key role in the decision. In a report dated June 25, 2024, the agency determined that the asylum application “does not contain sufficient elements to issue a favorable opinion for its admission.”
This assessment was central to the administrative resolution that rejected the request for international protection. Officials stated that “the allegations are not based on a well-founded fear of persecution for political opinions, religious beliefs, ethnicity, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or gender, identity, or sexual orientation.”
The Spanish court noted that international reports confirm “the Constitution in Morocco guarantees religious freedom.”
What is punishable under Moroccan law is “proselytism and attempting to convert Muslims to other religions, in addition to criticism of Islam.” However, “the conversion of a Moroccan citizen to a religion other than Islam is not a crime, with religious freedom being recognized.”
The ruling stated that subjective claims are insufficient without objective data supporting the existence of fear of personal and current persecution.
The court also found it suspicious that the man waited to request asylum until he was under an active deportation order, pointing out that “he had been registered in Spain by the Police since 2018, with no petition recorded until 2024, when his expulsion from Spain was already planned.”
Just recently, a similar case involved another Moroccan citizen who was deported from Spain after seeking asylum based on claims of persecution for participating in pro-Palestine demonstrations.
According to reports, the man arrived by boat through the Strait of Gibraltar in December 2024 before being sent to a detention center in Murcia.
Spanish authorities rejected his application, concluding that participation in several demonstrations did not establish evidence of individualized persecution.
Read also: Spanish National Court Rules Poverty in Morocco Insufficient for Asylum Qualification
