Moroccan journalist Ali Lmrabet held in pretrial detention

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 14 July 2026 |  JP Global Monitoring

Ali Lmrabet was arrested in Tangier on July 12 after returning from Spain and accused of disseminating false information and undermining institutions. He was ordered held in Casablanca pending investigation, and CPJ demanded his immediate release.

Summary

NEW YORK — Moroccan authorities have arrested French-Moroccan freelance journalist Ali Lmrabet after his return from Spain, prompting the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) to call for his immediate and unconditional release. CPJ said the detention marks the latest chapter in a decades-long pattern of legal pressure against one of Morocco's best-known independent journalists.

Lmrabet was arrested on July 12 after arriving at Tangier airport from Spain, where he has lived since 2015. Authorities accused him of "disseminating false information" and "undermining constitutional institutions." He was informed that multiple arrest warrants had been issued against him before being transferred to Casablanca for questioning by Morocco's National Brigade. The following day, prosecutors ordered him held in pretrial detention pending an investigation.

CPJ calls for immediate release

CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah said the journalist's detention demonstrated the continued use of Morocco's judicial system against critical reporting.

"After years of judicial harassment that forced veteran journalist Ali Lmrabet to build his life and career outside Morocco, authorities detained him the moment he returned to the country," Qudah said, urging Moroccan authorities to release him immediately and end the use of legal proceedings against journalists.

Lmrabet's wife, Laura Feliu, told CPJ that her husband remained calm throughout the proceedings and believed he had acted in accordance with journalistic ethics. She said he viewed the detention as "a form of hostage-taking," noting that he had been living and working in Spain for several years and no longer maintained a residence in Morocco.

Long history of legal pressure

Lmrabet has faced repeated legal action over more than two decades because of his reporting and criticism of Moroccan authorities. He founded the French-language weekly Demain and the Arabic-language publication Doumane, both of which were later shut down.

In 2003, he was sentenced to four years in prison over articles, interviews, cartoons, and satirical material critical of Morocco's monarchy. The sentence was later reduced to three years on appeal before he received a royal pardon and was released in July 2004.

Reporting from exile

In 2005, Moroccan authorities barred Lmrabet from practicing journalism in the country for 10 years over comments concerning Sahrawis living in refugee camps in Algeria's Tindouf region. Since then, he has continued his journalism from Barcelona.

According to CPJ, Lmrabet maintains a substantial online audience on Facebook and YouTube, with more than 200,000 followers combined. The organization said it sought comment from Morocco's Interior Ministry, the French embassy in Rabat, and the office of the French prime minister but had not received responses.

WHY THIS MATTERS: The case illustrates how criminal investigations and pretrial detention can affect journalists even after years spent reporting from outside their home country. For news organizations, it highlights the continuing legal risks faced by independent reporters and the broader implications such cases may have for investigative journalism, cross-border reporting, and press freedom.

ATTRIBUTION: Reporting by JournalismPakistan, based on publicly available statements from the Committee to Protect Journalists (July 15, 2026).

PHOTO: Screenshot: Ali Lmrabet/YouTube