Morocco arrests leader of protest movement

Al-Hoceima : Authorities in Morocco on Monday arrested the fugitive leader of a protest movement that has shaken the country's northern Rif region for months.

The prosecutor of the northern coastal city of Al-Hoceima said Nasser Zefzafi, who had been on the run since Friday, had been taken into custody.

He was detained "along with other individuals" and transferred to Casablanca, the prosecutor said in a statement, without providing further details of the arrests.

Those held will be investigated for "undermining the security of the state" and other criminal acts, the prosecutor added.

The Rif region has been shaken by social unrest since the death in October of a fishmonger crushed in a rubbish truck as he protested against the seizure of swordfish caught out of season.

Calls for justice for Mouhcine Fikri, 31, evolved into a grassroots movement demanding jobs and economic development, with Zefzafi, himself unemployed, emerging as the leader of the Al-Hirak al-Shaabi, or "Popular Movement", based largely in Al-Hoceima.

Zefzafi's arrest was ordered after he allegedly interrupted a preacher at a mosque on Friday and called for further demonstrations.

Prosecutors said the arrest was ordered after Zefzafi "obstructed, in the company of a group of individuals, freedom of worship" at the mosque in Al-Hoceima.

The protest leader later appeared in footage broadcast on social media saying he was "safe and sound" and calling for further demonstrations.

As of Monday evening police had arrested 40 people in connection with the disturbances in Al-Hoceima, according to officials.

For its part, the Moroccan Association of Human Rights (AMDH) said it had identified 50 people detained and that "the number of arrests continues to rise" and had passed 70 across the whole province.

The state bears "full responsibility for the consequences of this repressive approach" in the face of peaceful demonstrations in support of "the legitimate demands of the people," AMDH added.