chargement...
A Moroccan man, identified as Youssef El Asrouti, was arrested on Wednesday at Frankfurt Airport, according to an announcement by the German Federal Prosecutor's Office relayed on Thursday by AFP. He is accused of spying on activists of the Hirak, a protest movement born in the Rif region of northern Morocco, since January 2022.
According to the public prosecutor's office, Youssef El Asrouti collaborated with Mohamed A., who was sentenced in August 2023 to a one-year, nine-month suspended prison sentence by a court in Düsseldorf for similar offenses.
Prior to his arrest in Germany, Youssef El Asrouti had been arrested in Spain on December 1, 2024, under a European arrest warrant. After six weeks in detention, he was extradited to Germany. Presented to a judge on Thursday, he was remanded in custody.
However, contradictory details about his background have emerged. According to sources close to the case, Youssef El Asrouti, a radical activist based in Europe, has carried out multiple subversive actions against Morocco. Described as an active member of the «republican current» that unites Hirak activists in Europe, he is said to have taken a virulent stance against the Kingdom and publicly called for the independence of the Rif.
A radical activist with a turbulent past
Although not originally from the Rif, El Asrouti is alleged to have worked closely with Jabir El Ghadioui, alias Yuba, a Düsseldorf-based figurehead of the «republicans». Under his influence, he participated in the development of projects deemed subversive by the Moroccan authorities.
His activism intensified after an attempted deportation to Germany in 2018, when he was imprisoned for irregular residence. Although an asylum application had been filed in his name, it was rejected, leading to deportation proceedings. However, these were aborted after a violent altercation at the airport prevented his deportation to Morocco.
Expelled from Germany in May 2018, he settled in the Netherlands, where he reapplied for asylum, claiming persecution by Moroccan authorities due to his activism. He also published a letter renouncing his Moroccan citizenship and disavowing his allegiance to King Mohammed VI—a move widely interpreted as an attempt to obtain political refugee status.
The Hirak, at the root of these tensions, emerged in 2016 after the tragic death of Mouhcine Fikri, a fish vendor crushed in a dumpster while trying to recover his seized goods. This tragedy triggered massive demonstrations denouncing the «marginalization» of the Rif and calling for its development. The movement was followed by waves of arrests and convictions in Morocco.
