Three MEPs belonging to The Left group were forced back to Spain Thursday evening after landing in Laayoune, the capital of the disputed territory of the Western Sahara, which is partly controlled by Morocco.
After landing and descending to the tarmac the MEPs were denied passage by men in uniform and “violently forced back” onto their plane, the lawmakers said in a statement.
“There was no reason given, they just told us that we were persona non grata, and that officials of Morocco denied [us the right] to go there,” Finnish MEP Jussi Saramo told POLITICO by phone shortly after landing back in the Canary Islands.
Saramo, Spain’s Isabel Serra and Portugal’s Catarina Martins argued they had been on an “observation mission” to monitor compliance with a recent EU court ruling annulling the agriculture and fishing arrangements between the EU and Morocco.
The MEPs were traveling in a personal capacity as their visit was not an official mission organized by The Left group or by the Parliament, two officials told POLITICO.
In an October 2024 ruling, the EU’s Court of Justice sided with the Polisario Front of Western Sahara, which had appealed to have trade deals annulled that allowed Morocco to export fish and farm products from the annexed territory to the EU.
Morocco has long claimed sovereignty over Western Sahara, a coastal territory in North Africa formerly controlled by Spain. But neighboring Algeria backs the Polisario Front instead, a group that for decades has fought for self-determination for the region.
“We have good connection to the Polisario but also other NGOs that we were actually trying to meet,” Saramo said.
“Morocco does not want us to see the human rights abuses they are committing in the Western Sahara, which they illegally occupy,” he added in a post on Instagram.
In light of the incident, the lawmakers will be sending a complaint to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola and European Council President António Costa, as well as to the foreign ministries of their respective countries. “The European Union has the power to influence Morocco,” Saramo said.
Asked about the incident, a Parliament spokesperson told POLITICO that “MEPs have to be treated with dignity and respect.”
The Moroccan embassy in Belgium and the EU delegation in Rabat did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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