{"id":2439,"date":"2026-08-07T16:05:55","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T16:05:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2439"},"modified":"2026-08-07T16:05:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T16:05:55","slug":"a-harsh-first-ruling-in-morocco-after-ceuta-surge-with-7-taxi-drivers-jailed-union-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2439","title":{"rendered":"A \u2018harsh\u2019 first ruling in Morocco after Ceuta surge with 7 taxi drivers jailed, union says"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>Associated Press (AP) \u2014 Seven Moroccan taxi drivers were sentenced to up to six months in prison and fined $1,070 each for aiding irregular migration by driving people to the <span>Spanish border in Ceuta.<\/span> It marked the first ruling in Morocco tied to the surge of <span>more than 70,000 people crossing<\/span> into the tiny Spanish North African territory over the past week.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2438\">Officials say Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have signed a key defense agreement<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Judges in the northern Moroccan city of Tetouan found the taxi drivers guilty of \u201cfacilitating the illegal exit of Moroccans and foreigners through unauthorized border points\u201d and \u201ctransporting passengers without a license,\u201d after they drove clients to the Moroccan border town of Fnideq, according to excerpts of the ruling on the Justice Ministry website.<\/p>\n<p>The drivers were sentenced Monday after appearing before prosecutors without defense representation due to a nationwide lawyers\u2019 strike. They retain the right to appeal. One vehicle was confiscated by authorities.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Dozens in pre-trial detention<\/h2>\n<p>The Moroccan Association of Human Rights said on Friday that 111 people are in pretrial detention following the <span>recent Ceuta events.<\/span> Charges include mass rebellion, assaulting public officials and obstruction of traffic, it said.<\/p>\n<p>Morocco\u2019s Justice Ministry and the public prosecutor\u2019s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<p>Labor unions, including the national taxi union, condemned the sentences as \u201cshocking and harsh,\u201d noting in a statement that \u201cno official decision was issued imposing restrictions on passenger transport.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2437\">As blackouts stretch for days, life in Cuba revolves around small bursts of electricity<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cTaxi drivers cannot be held responsible for what happened,\u201d Ali Younes, secretary general of the Tetouan branch of the national taxi union told The Associated Press. \u201cThey were punished simply for providing a public service.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<!-- AP \"Read More\" embed (place mid-article) --><\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>Fueled by false social media rumors<\/span> that the border was open and economic hardship, tens of thousands of Moroccans crossed or swam into Ceuta, a Spanish city that sits on the North African coast, triggering a <span>crisis resonating across Europe.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>More than 80 people died on both sides of the border. Nearly all of the migrants who survived were expelled by Spanish authorities or returned voluntarily after seeing they were unwelcome. An estimated <span>1,000 minors remain<\/span>, their future uncertain.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Officials in Spain take apart a major trafficking network<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile, European Union police agency Europol on Friday announced that an international police operation led by Spanish authorities dismantled a major criminal network involved in trafficking <span>migrants<\/span>, drugs and weapons across the Western Mediterranean. The operation resulted in 78 arrests in Spain and Algeria in June, weeks before the migrant surge into Ceuta.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2433\">A Russian retail giant\u2019s warehouse burns after Ukraine\u2019s latest long-range drone attack<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seven Moroccan taxi drivers have been sentenced to up to six months in prison and fined for aiding irregular migration. They drove people to the Spanish border in Ceuta. This is the first ruling in Morocco related to the recent surge of over 70,000 people crossing into the Spanish territory. Judges in Tetouan found them guilty of facilitating illegal exits and transporting passengers without a license. The drivers were sentenced Monday without defense representation due to a lawyers\u2019 strike. They can appeal. Labor unions condemned the sentences as harsh, stating drivers were punished for providing a public service.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2298,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>A \u2018harsh\u2019 first ruling in Morocco after Ceuta surge with 7 taxi drivers jailed, union says - Top Moving Pros<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=2439\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A \u2018harsh\u2019 first ruling in Morocco after Ceuta surge with 7 taxi drivers jailed, union says - Top Moving Pros\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Seven Moroccan taxi drivers have been sentenced to up to six months in prison and fined for aiding irregular migration. They drove people to the Spanish border in Ceuta. This is the first ruling in Morocco related to the recent surge of over 70,000 people crossing into the Spanish territory. Judges in Tetouan found them guilty of facilitating illegal exits and transporting passengers without a license. The drivers were sentenced Monday without defense representation due to a lawyers\u2019 strike. They can appeal. 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