Sahrawi Human Rights Committee Condemns Violent Crackdown on Students in Agadir
The Sahrawi National Committee for Human Rights (SNCHR) has strongly condemned the brutal crackdown carried out by Moroccan security forces against Sahrawi students at Agadir University. The intervention targeted a peaceful sit-in held by the students in solidarity with Sahrawi political prisoners detained in Moroccan occupation prisons.
In an official statement issued Monday, the SNCHR described the Moroccan action as a “violent and savage” assault on the students’ right to free expression and peaceful protest. The Committee denounced it as a “flagrant violation of university sanctity and a denial of fundamental freedoms,” all of which are guaranteed by international law and human rights treaties.
The incident occurred on June 16, when Moroccan forces encircled the Faculty of Legal, Economic, and Social Sciences at Agadir University to suppress the solidarity action. Authorities reportedly escalated the repression by referring several students to a disciplinary council, exposing them to punitive measures.
The SNCHR voiced full solidarity with the Sahrawi student victims, denouncing their treatment as a form of repression, torture, and deprivation of basic rights. The Committee called on international human rights organizations and humanitarian groups to exert pressure on Morocco to uphold freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, particularly within academic institutions.
The Committee further demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all Sahrawi political prisoners, the cancellation of unjust sentences, and full disclosure of the fate of more than 400 missing Sahrawis. It also called for the opening of the occupied Sahrawi territories to international media, observers, and parliamentary delegations to expose the ongoing human rights abuses.
The SNCHR concluded by warning that the media blackout and international silence surrounding these violations serve only to prolong Morocco’s occupation and intensify the suffering of the Sahrawi people in their struggle for freedom and self-determination.
