صحافة بلادي صحيفة إلكترونية مغاربية متجددة على مدار الساعة تعنى بشؤون المغرب الجزائر ليبيا موريتانيا تونس
Morocco –Yesterday, Tuesday, February 25, 2026, the Rabat Court of Appeal decided to postpone consideration of the case of lawyer and former Minister of Human Rights, Mohamed Zayan, until next March 17, while rejecting the request for temporary release submitted by his defense, and keeping him in detention in the local prison, Al-Arjat, on the outskirts of Salé.
The postponement decision came to enable the court to summon a third defendant in the case, as part of continuing to consider the file after the previous appeal ruling was overturned by the Court of Cassation and referred again to the Court of Appeal to decide on it in a different body.
During the session, the defense body submitted a request for temporary release, based on the health status of the person concerned and his advanced age (82 years), in addition to what it considered sufficient guarantees for attendance. The defense team also raised the requirements of the decision issued by the Court of Cassation and some developments related to criminal procedure, especially Article Three of the Criminal Procedure Law. However, the court decided to reject the request, while ordering the continuation of pretrial detention.
Muhammad Zayan is being prosecuted against the backdrop of accusations related to “embezzlement and squandering of public funds,” in addition to participating in benefiting from benefits within an institution that he supervised the management of. The actions attributed to him are linked to his period as General Secretariat of the Free Moroccan Party.
The Criminal Chamber of First Instance had convicted Zayan on July 19, 2024, with five years in prison, before the Court of Appeal ruled to reduce the sentence to three years in prison. After the cassation appeal, it was decided to cancel the appeal decision and return the file to the Court of Appeal for a new decision.
The Rabat Court of Appeal will resume consideration of the file in a different body, taking into account the legal observations included in the decision of the Court of Cassation, with the prospect of issuing a new ruling that responds to the procedural and legal requirements raised during the appeal stage.
The case remains open to new developments during the session expected in mid-March, where it is expected to continue discussing the file and listening to the various parties concerned, within the framework of respecting the guarantees of a fair trial and the presumption of innocence.
Source:“My press”
