Madrid, April 11, 2015 (SPS) - A Spanish judge on Thursday proposed referring to a court 11 Moroccan police and military officials for "genocide" and killings between 1975 and 1991 in Western Sahara, the last colony in Africa occupied by Morocco since 1975.
In a decision notifying the conclusion of the investigation made at the request of prosecutors, Judge Baltasar Garzon of the National Court, believes that these Moroccan officials should be prosecuted.
According to that ruling, cited by AFP, “there is reasonable evidence” to prosecute these people charged for “genocide” in connection with “killings”, “arbitrary detention” and “torture” committed in the Western Sahara.
Moreover, the judge issued an arrest warrant against seven suspects already indicted and issued four rogatory letters against four people, so that their prosecution be notified because they were not mentioned before.
According to the judge, "the Sahrawi civilians were systematically attacked by the police and the Moroccan army" between 1975 and 1991 during the armed conflict between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario Front, fighting against the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara.
The investigation was opened by Judge Garzon in October 2007, after the filing of a complaint by associations for the defense of human rights and victims' families reporting the disappearance of over 500 Saharawis from 1975.
At that time, Western Sahara is occupied by Morocco but some victims had Spanish identification.
Spanish justice was then investigated the potential liabilities of 13 suspects from a total of 32, some of whom died including Basri, who was for 20 years the Minister of the Interior of the late King Hassan II of Morocco, according to the agency. (SPS)
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