Expulsion by Morocco of members of the International Association of Jurists for Western Sahara

Subject: Expulsion by Morocco of members of the International Association of Jurists for Western Sahara

On Saturday 15 March 2025, Morocco expelled members of the International Association of Jurists for Western Sahara The Moroccan authorities prevented a delegation of Canary Islands lawyers whose mission was to analyse the human rights situation in Western Sahara from entering El Aaiún, expelling them in a ‘hot return’.

This expulsion comes on top of a long list of restrictions imposed by Morocco to hide the repression in the occupied territory and of expulsions of journalists, politicians, lawyers and international observers to prevent them from revealing the true reality of the repression and attacks suffered by the Saharawi people at the hands of the Moroccan authorities.

The Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy should condemn this expulsion and inform the Delegation of the European Union in Rabat of this restriction of access, compounding a pattern of violations affecting the Sahrawi population in the occupied territories.

1. Is the European Union going to make it clear to Morocco that it must allow unrestricted access to Western Sahara?

2. When and how is it going to publicly condemn these repeated expulsions that make it impossible to assess the human rights situation, hold meetings with the Saharawi population and visit the towns and villages as normal?

Submitted: 9.4.2025