(AI Translated) Mohamed Khouna Babit, born in 1981, a Sahrawi human rights defender, was subjected to arrest and trial in a context marked by the repression of protests and demands related to human rights and fundamental freedoms in Western Sahara. He was sentenced in 2017 by the Court of Appeal in Salé, Morocco, to 25 years in prison in a case linked to the events at the Akrim Ezik camp.

The Sahrawi political prisoner Mohamed Babit worked in the local administration in the occupied city of Laayoune, but his protest activity and participation in demonstrations made him vulnerable to repeated pressures and threats. After the violent dismantling of the Akrim Ezik camp in November 2010 by the Moroccan occupying forces, he regularly took part in demonstrations and marches demanding the release of detainees and prisoners, and continued to express his positions and participate in protests despite what he said were threats and pressures from his workplace and the authorities.

On 15 August 2011, Mohamed Khouna Babit was arrested. During his appearance before the Court of Appeal, he gave a detailed account of the circumstances of his arrest and what he endured during detention. He reported being taken to a deserted place near the Akrim Ezik camp, stripped of his clothes and tortured, and also described other forms of torture and ill‑treatment during his transfer first to Agadir and then to the second prison in Salé.

According to his testimony, the confessions and statements on which the case was based were not given voluntarily; he signed them, he says, under the weight of torture, pressure and coercion. He also explicitly denied being present in the Akrim Ezik camp on 8 November 2010, the date linked to the events that formed the basis of the case in which he was tried.

These statements, together with the circumstances of his arrest and trial, raise serious questions about the respect for fair trial guarantees, particularly the prohibition of torture and the inadmissibility of coerced confessions as evidence. His case also highlights the risks that human rights defenders may face when they participate in peaceful protests, document violations, and advocate for the rights of detainees.