Moroccan

Rabat, Morocco – “I was surveilled not because of a specific article. I was investigating land dispossession in Morocco. I then learned I was a Pegasus target,” Omar Radi, a journalist and human rights defender, told Al Jazeera, referring to the mobile surveillance tool developed by Israeli company NSO Group.

The findings emerged in June 2020, when Amnesty International Security Lab examined his phone. Radi, now based in Germany, said he had spent two years, from 2018 to 2020, noticing signs including his phone’s battery draining quickly, its temperature rising and the network slowing down.

The physical surveillance, he said, was barely discreet.

“They came every day to get a daily report from the parking attendants in my street, the shops I used to go to, and my friends,” he said. “I would sometimes turn around and walk towards the people following me to take photographs, but they ran quickly and hid their faces.”

His case is among four detailed in a new Amnesty International report, We Start With the Verdict: Inside Morocco’s Surveillance Machine, produced with 14 media organisations and coordinated by the international network of journalists Forbidden Stories.

The other three are Fouad Abdelmoumni, a veteran activist; Abdessadak El Bouchattaoui, a human rights lawyer; and Hicham Mansouri, a journalist in exile who had been imprisoned in 2015 on charges of adultery and sexual exploitation, which Amnesty describes as trumped-up.

The report draws on interviews with a whistleblower using the pseudonym Safir, a former employee of Morocco’s General Directorate for Territorial Surveillance (DGST). Amnesty said it corroborated key parts of Safir’s testimony with independent sources, technical evidence and interviews with 10 people identified as surveillance targets, including Radi.

“The Amnesty report connected many dots as to what I was living and feeling while I was under tight surveillance,” Radi said.

“It explains the extraordinary aspect of my police interrogations and my trial, where many of my rights weren’t respected, because even the judicial police and the judges were under monitoring,” he added.

Amnesty identifies the DGST as the agency behind the deployment of Pegasus spyware in Morocco and documents what it describes as abuses of the spyware against activists and journalists between 2017 and 2021.

Morocco denies surveillance

Morocco has previously rejected Amnesty’s allegations that its authorities used Pegasus to target journalists, activists and other critics.

In statements issued in 2020 and 2022, Moroccan authorities challenged Amnesty to provide material evidence supporting its claims.

Amnesty said it wrote to Moroccan authorities four weeks before publishing its latest report and invited them to respond, but received no response.

Al Jazeera also sought comment from Moroccan officials but had not received a response at the time of publication.

Moroccan media have also challenged the latest report. Le360 cited arguments that the presence of a phone number in Pegasus targeting records does not, by itself, prove that a device was infected or establish who ordered an alleged attack.

The outlet also argued that Amnesty had not provided the conclusive technical and material evidence Moroccan authorities had demanded.

The report says Morocco’s Pegasus operations were fully active by October 2017, pointing to the case of human rights lawyer El Bouchattaoui, whose number was entered into the system in September 2017 and selected for targeting weeks before he received an infection link by text message.

Amnesty said its analysis of Pegasus records matched 103 Moroccan phone numbers to individuals identified as potential targets between September and December 2017. Of those, 65 were identifiable as civil society members, including 34 human rights defenders, 22 journalists and media workers, five lawyers and four academics.

According to Amnesty, Safir described a surveillance apparatus that combined digital and physical methods. Targeted individuals were secretly filmed and recorded in detention, offices, cars, cafes and even bedrooms, he said.

Phone shops, he added, were coopted to sell targets devices infected with spyware. Neighbours of human rights defenders, he said, were recruited as informants to file daily reports on their movements.

Safir also described the use of remote control systems (RCS) at internet cafes. Field agents would identify which cafe a target was visiting, he said, giving the DGST access to activity on machines it had already infected and allowing an operator to track calls, read messages, access photographs and record audio.

The report says similar tactics were used against activist Abdelmoumni, who was secretly filmed at home with his fiancee in 2021. Abdelmoumni said he believed the footage was captured through a hidden camera in an air-conditioning unit, based on the recording’s angle.

Safir described the episode as a “textbook case” of a DGST surveillance and cleanup operation designed to leave no trace.

Journalists describe pressure and intimidation

Taoufik Bouachrine, one of Morocco’s best-known journalists and host of the Talk on Politics podcast, was not named in Amnesty’s report but described a similar pattern.

“In Morocco, as in all Arab countries, inventive methods are used to silence journalists and deter them from investigative journalism, particularly when it concerns the unlawful exercise of power, financial corruption, and the intertwining of political authority and money,” he told Al Jazeera.

The first method, he said, is fabricating criminal cases against journalists, “often involving allegations of sexual misconduct in a conservative society that amount to a journalist’s moral execution”.

The second, he said, is a smear campaign run through armies of online trolls and operatives who target journalists and their families.

Bouachrine, 57, was arrested in 2018 on charges of rape and human trafficking and sentenced to 15 years in prison. He has denied the charges, saying his prosecution was tied to his journalism.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found Bouachrine’s detention arbitrary and said he had been subjected to judicial harassment. The European Parliament adopted a resolution calling for his release, along with other journalists tried on similar charges.

He served more than six years before being released under a royal pardon. By then, Akhbar Al-Youm, the newspaper he founded, had already closed. Bouachrine said authorities had cut off its advertising revenue.

“This is another method of destroying investigative journalism,” he added, “turning off the advertising tap and leaving a newspaper to die slowly.”

DRAMATIC Alaskan landscapes, a medieval city on Spain’s north coast and surf beaches in Morocco are among THE places to visit in 2027, according to Lonely Planet.

The experts’ latest book – Best In Travel 2027 – recommends exploring a treasure trove of places off the beaten track.

And that includes unforgettable experiences tipped for 2027, from “flightseeing” in the skies above icy Alaska, to hiking the historic St Cuthbert’s Way from the Scottish borders to Northumberland.

Lisa Minot picks her favourite destinations and experiences from the list.

BEST EXPERIENCES

GO FLIGHTSEEING ALASKA: With just 20 per cent of Alaska accessible by road, taking to the skies in a small plane is one of the best ways to experience its vast wilderness.

WAIL OF A TIME

I drove Irish Route 66 with deserted golden beaches and pirate-like islands

TEMPTED?

Tiny ‘Bali of Europe’ town with stunning beaches, €3 cocktails and £20 flights

May and June are the best months for the driest, most stable weather, while July and August mean up to 20 hours of daylight and lush landscapes.

WALK ST CUTHBERT’S WAY: Follow this 62-mile pilgrimage from Melrose to Lindisfarne through the wild uplands of the Scottish borders to Northumberland.

You’ll pass through moorlands, by ghostly hill forts and stop at cosy village pubs before visiting Holy Island.

See stcuthbertsway.info.

DIVE THE AEGEAN: Once heavily restricted to protect underwater antiquities from pillaging, you can now discover Poseidon’s underwater world as new legislation and the opening of underwater archaeological sites allows you to explore marine treasures.

Examples include the Peristera shipwreck off the island of Alonissos.

It sank in the 5th century, carrying more than 4,000 wine amphorae (clay jars).

Or visit the Fourni Archipelago, known as the ancient shipwreck capital of the world.

SAIL THE AEOLIAN ISLANDS, ITALY: Island hopping isn’t the reserve of the Greeks.

Sail between these lesser-known islands to discover rugged coastlines, clear waters and Italian traditions.

Set sail from Sicily on the fast ferries that visit all seven islands, but book ahead in summer.

Or join a skippered sailing holiday through UK operators such as Sunsail or Dream Yacht Charter.

EXPLORE KILLARY FJORD, IRELAND: Tucked along Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way, the Killary Fjord in Co Galway cuts its way ten miles inland towards the village of Leenaun, past steep peaks that change dramatically with the seasons. It’s some of the most dramatic scenery in the country.

BEST PLACES

SWEDISH RIVIERA: After this year’s heatwaves, travellers may be looking for cooler destinations.

The twin towns of Skanor and Falsterbo are connected by a bridge and home to colourful cottages, gardens and an endless coastline.

SIBENIK, CROATIA: This small but lively Adriatic city has colourful festivals and gastronomic delights from fresh Adriatic seafood to truffle pastas.

Explore a labyrinth of steep stone alleyways, hidden plazas and Venetian-era architecture.

The city sits between the coastal towns of Split and Zadar and there are plenty of low-cost flights into both from the UK.

LEON, SPAIN: Northern Spain is having its moment in 2027.

Known for its many bars offering free tapas, Leon combines centuries of history with a lively contemporary spirit.

When you order a wine, cider or beer, expect a substantial plate of local cured beef, cheese and spicy blood sausage.

Best explored by hire car, flying into Santander or Bilbao.

RABAT, MOROCCO: Think all the exotic excitement of Marrakech but without the crowds.

Rabat on Morocco’s coast boasts royal palaces, coastal breezes and clean, palm-lined avenues.

The country’s imperial city still has a great Medina — for haggling over leather goods, spices and rugs — as well as miles of wide, sandy beaches.

There are direct flights from Gatwick and Stansted.

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND, CANADA: Known as Canada’s food island, the country’s smallest province is known for mussels, oysters and roadside lobster rolls served straight off the fishing boats.

Expect lush hills, white sand beaches and red sandstone cliffs dotted with lighthouses.

Author LM Montgomery set her novel Anne Of Green Gables here, and Netflix’s adaptation, Anne With An E, filmed in the province.

Political parties in Morocco are intensifying campaign efforts before legislative elections on September 23, which will ultimately decide Morocco’s next government.

Twenty-seven political parties are competing for 395 seats in the House of Representatives and the vote comes at a crucial time for the country.

Rising living costs, pressure on public services, and high youth unemployment – currently at 37.3 percent for Moroccans aged 15 to 24 – are all issues being hotly debated.

Party headquarters across Morocco and sites at packed city neighbourhoods and markets have been transformed into electioneering operation rooms. Campaign teams navigate crowded streets with loudspeakers, music, and leaflets to catch the attention of Morocco’s 15.8 million registered voters.

“We choose communication locations carefully; we start from a field map where we define the spaces where citizens meet naturally, then we divide the team according to tasks between direct communication and recording observations,” al-Wali al-Shtouki, campaign manager for the Justice and Development Party (PJD) in the Medina-Sidi Youssef Ben Ali district, told Al Jazeera.

“We also hold small meetings at the headquarters because they allow a calm and direct dialogue to understand what the citizen actually expects. What we hear in the field is what guides our daily work. After every tour or meeting, we collect observations and repeated questions and discuss them within the team, then we distinguish between local issues that need follow-up and those related to public policies and parliamentary work.”

While physical headquarters serve as hubs for election campaigns, a party’s success ultimately relies on its roots within a community, Jawad al-Shafdi, head of the Moroccan Observatory for Political Participation, said.

“In the Moroccan case, the strength of the candidate, their local extension, their network of relationships, and their electoral record also play essential roles,” al-Shafdi told Al Jazeera.

“We may find a party with limited organisational presence in a specific district achieving a significant result thanks to a strong candidate, and vice versa. Winning votes is achieved through a more complex system that combines party organisation, candidate strength, local extension, networks of elected officials, direct and digital communication, in addition to the party’s image and political offering.

“Therefore, the true criterion is not the number of people who enter the headquarters, but its ability to convert organisational movement into electoral mobilisation, mobilisation into votes, and votes into seats.”

Digital, direct engagement

The competition has forced political groups to adopt multi-channel strategies that balance street-level outreach with digital campaigns to reach a broader audience.

Fatima al-Tamni, a candidate for the Left Alliance in the Ain Sebaa – Hay Mohammadi district in Casablanca, highlighted the necessity of direct engagement with voters rather than superficial campaign displays.

She believes that party campaigns should serve as a space to listen to the concerns of the electorate and propose solutions, while building a strategic vision for transport, housing, pollution and other issues.

“We do not want to speak to the citizen from above, nor turn the campaign into a festival of pictures and slogans… We want to speak with them in clear language, and hear from them before we speak in their name,” she said. “[It] is not an end in itself, but the beginning of a new political relationship with citizens based on clarity, accountability, and fulfilling commitments.”

Youssef Ait Sidi Said, a political activist with the Progress and Socialism Party in the Chichaoua province, said campaigning remains an evolving process.

“For the party, this campaign is no longer just a specific period to introduce candidates and the electoral programme, but has become an opportunity for direct and continuous communication with the population and listening to their concerns and expectations,” Ait Sidi Said told Al Jazeera.

“Digital platforms allow reaching broad groups, especially youth, and grant them the possibility to interact, ask questions, and express their opinions. However, we do not consider that digitisation can replace direct communication. On the contrary, we see that each tool has its function.”

Ultimately, direct engagement with voters should remain the hallmark of party campaigns, he said.

“Field communication allows direct listening to the citizen, while digital platforms allow expanding the reach, interaction, and documenting activities,” Ait Sidi Said added.