Casablanca – The Tetouan Court of First Instance has postponed the trial of 62 people facing charges linked to the recent mass attempted crossings into occupied Ceuta, according to converging reports.
The defendants are being prosecuted in separate cases stemming from the events that unfolded at the Bab Sebta border crossing, where thousands of people attempted to reach Ceuta in late July.
The court decided to adjourn the proceedings until August 10 to allow the Public Prosecutor’s Office to summon alleged victims, most of whom are members of the public security forces, along with representatives of public and private institutions whose property was damaged during the unrest.
The defendants face different charges depending on the allegations against each individual.
Some are accused of facilitating the clandestine departure of Moroccan citizens through locations other than designated border crossings, operating unauthorized passenger transport services, participating in collective disobedience involving weapons, insulting public officials while they were carrying out their duties, using violence against them with weapons, and damaging property intended for public use.
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Others face charges including insulting public officials during the exercise of their duties, assaulting security personnel in attacks that allegedly caused injuries and bloodshed with premeditation and the use of weapons, taking part in armed collective resistance against public officials enforcing orders and decisions, deliberately damaging public property, and intentionally causing material damage to movable property belonging to others.
The latest postponement comes after the Tetouan court had already begun examining multiple files related to the events. Earlier proceedings involved 25 defendants appearing in separate cases tied to alleged acts of violence against security forces, organizing or facilitating irregular migration, unauthorized transport activities, and damage to public property.
Moroccan authorities have said the investigations target individuals suspected of participating in the organization, financing, transportation, or violent incidents connected to the attempted crossings, while all defendants remain presumed innocent until a final court ruling.
Separately, the Moroccan Association for the Defense of Human Rights has called on the Public Prosecutor at the Tetouan Court of Appeal to open a judicial investigation into a widely circulated video that appears to show members of the public forces assaulting a would-be migrant during the events.
The organization requested an official statement on the incident and alleged that the footage showed excessive use of force. Authorities had not publicly announced the opening of a judicial investigation into those allegations at the time of writing.
