The National Human Rights Council (Human Rights Morocco) presents this report on the situation of seven prisoners sentenced to prison terms following the Gdeim Izik events. This report follows up on the information published by the Council on its official Facebook page on 16 October 2026 announcing that the prisoners named below had ended their hunger strikes.
I. Background and methodology of visits
As soon as the prisoners announced that they were beginning a hunger strike at the Central Prison in Kenitra, Tiflet 2 Local Prison, Marrakech’s Oudaya Prison, and Benguerir’s Local Prison, the Chairperson of Human Rights Morocco dispatched multidisciplinary teams to these prisons to visit them. The first visits of the kind took place on 29 September 2026, followed by follow-up visits on 14 and 15 October 2026.
The visits were conducted in accordance with the practical Guidelines for Managing Hunger Strikes in Prison Facilities, developed jointly by Human Rights Morocco, the General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration, the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Ministry of Health, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Interviews were held in private to ensure confidentiality. The Council’s medical teams also conducted individual medical examinations, strictly respecting medical confidentiality. In addition, the teams met with prison doctors and reviewed the medical records of the prisoners concerned.
During the interviews, the teams explained the potential risks that hunger strikes pose to the prisoners’ health and safety. At the same time, they sought to mediate between the prisoners and the relevant prison authorities in an effort to obtain a favourable response to some of the prisoners’ requests.
II. Prisoners’ demands and the prison administration’s clarifications
The prisoners’ main demand was to be transferred to prisons closer to their families.
The General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration stated that the prisoners had been informed that their requests could not be granted, given that the prisons they had requested were not suited to the length of their prison sentences and were intended for other categories of inmates.
As for the suspension of their telephone privileges, the Prison Administration stated that the measure had been taken because the prisoners had violated internal regulations by using the service for purposes unrelated to family communication.
III. On the visits
1. Ahmed Sbai, Mohamed Bachir Boutanguiza and Houssein Zaoui - the Central Prison in Kenitra
The three prisoners announced that they were beginning a hunger strike on 23 September 2026 and formally notified the Prison Administration in writing, requesting to be transferred to prisons closer to their families. They were subsequently transferred to the prison’s medical unit.
During the visit on 29 September, they said they had been unable to retrieve some of their personal belongings following their transfer to the medical unit. Human Rights Morocco then intervened, following which the prison director immediately instructed the staff to return their belongings to them.
During the visits on 29 September and 14 October, the three prisoners also reported that their telephone privileges had been suspended since the start of the hunger strike.
Houssein Zaoui explained that he had declined family visits, including visits from his wife, to spare his family the long journey between Laayoune and Kenitra. He added that he had already informed the prison administration of his decision.
2. Mohamed Lemine Haddi - Tiflet 2 Local Prison
Mohamed Lemine Haddi stated that he was not on hunger strike. This was also confirmed by the prison director. He reiterated his request to be transferred to a prison closer to his family in Laayoune.
He also said he was able to speak to his family by telephone three times a week and was receiving regular medical care.
3. Abdallah Abbahah - Tiflet 2 Local Prison
Abdallah Abbahah declined to meet with Human Rights Morocco’s team during its visit on 29 September. The team observed that he appeared agitated, despite the team’s efforts to engage him in conversation.
During the follow-up visit on 14 October, the prison director informed the team that Abbahah had been transferred first to the Hospital in Khemisset and then to Moulay Youssef Hospital in Rabat, where the Council’s team was able to visit him.
4. El Bachir Khadda - Laayoune 2 Local Prison
Human Rights Morocco was informed that Bachir Khadda had been transferred to Laayoune 2 Local Prison on 25 September 2026 after meeting the applicable transfer criteria, as he had less than four years left to serve on his sentence.
Khadda had previously told the Council’s team that he was not on hunger strike.
5. Naama Asfari and Hassan Dah - Oudaya Prison in Marrakech and Benguerir Local Prison
Naama Asfari and Hassan Dah announced that they were going on hunger strike on 23 September 2026, demanding transfers to prisons closer to their families. Asfari also requested permission to speak by telephone with his wife, who lives abroad.
Human Rights Morocco’s team noted that both prisoners were being held in individual cells. Both described their detention conditions as normal and raised no specific complaints about their detention conditions.
IV. On the prisoners’ health
The Council’s teams shared their observations on the prisoners’ health with the doctors at the respective prison facilities.
Human Rights Morocco notes that:
- Mohamed Bachir Boutanguiza: He was the only prisoner who refused a medical examination.
- Ahmed Sbai and Houssein Zaoui: Both were in generally good health at the time of their examinations. They were conscious and coherent, and their vital signs were within normal ranges. Neither showed any clinical signs of dehydration, and their laboratory test results were normal, although some mild symptoms were noted. Both received medical monitoring under the procedures for managing hunger strikes.
- Naama Asfari and Hassan Dah: Both were in stable conditions and received medical monitoring under the procedures for managing hunger strikes.
V. End of the hunger strikes
In a letter dated 30 September 2026, addressed to the Delegate-General for Prison Administration and Reintegration, Naama Asfari announced his decision to suspend his hunger strike.
Five prisoners ended their hunger strikes on 14 October 2026, while the last prisoner ended his strike on 15 October 2026.
