[prisoner-rights] Morocco/Western Sahara: 100 Moroccan prisoners released and repatriated

Press release No. 04/13
24 February 2004

Morocco/Western Sahara:
100 Moroccan prisoners released and repatriated

Geneva (ICRC) ­ Today, 100 Moroccan prisoners released by the Polisario
Front were repatriated under the auspices of the International Committee of
the Red Cross (ICRC). The release came following mediation by Qatar.

Accompanied by an ICRC team, the prisoners left Tindouf, Algeria, aboard an
aircraft provided by Qatar and were handed over to the Moroccan authorities
at the Inezgane military base, near Agadir. Before the operation, ICRC
delegates had interviewed the prisoners individually to make sure that they
were being repatriated of their own free will.

The ICRC welcomes the release of the 100 prisoners. The organization
nevertheless remains concerned about the plight of the 514 Moroccans still
being held captive and reiterates its call for their release, in conformity
with the provisions of international humanitarian law.

ICRC delegates visit the prisoners twice a year. The purpose of these
visits, the latest of which took place between 2 and 16 December 2003, is
to assess conditions of detention and developments in the prisoners'
physical and psychological health.


For further information, please contact:
Florian Westphal, ICRC Geneva, tel.: +41 22 730 29 30
Mohamed Ben Ahmed, ICRC Tunis, tel. + 216 71 960 179