A car drives by a roundabout in Western Sahara

Clooney Foundation for Justice Statement on Access to Trial of Nazha El Khalidi in Western Sahara

Clooney Foundation for Justice is deeply disappointed that Moroccan authorities denied TrialWatch monitors entry to Western Sahara.

When TrialWatch monitors told Moroccan authorities that they intended to observe the trial of Nazha El Khalidi – a woman being prosecuted for ‘falsely claiming to be a journalist’ – the monitors were refused entry and promptly deported. The right to a public hearing is a human right set forth in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and an integral part of the right to a fair trial. We call upon the Moroccan authorities to allow trial monitors access to future proceedings in Western Sahara. Seeking to avoid scrutiny is not a legitimate basis for denying them entry.