#Ben_Barka #Joseph_Tual #France_3 #Morocco #DGED #Maroc_Hebdo #Miloud_Tounzi #Ralph_Boussier #Rodolphe_Bosselut
Moroccan Wikileaks: New documents leak Dangerous Liaisons: The DGED and Maroc Hebdo vs. a French journalist Investigation dated 12/18/2014 By Sébastien Rochat
Forty-nine years after the kidnapping of the primary opponent of King Hassan II in Paris in 1965, the Ben Barka affair continues to occupy the French judiciary and Moroccan intelligence services. On Tuesday, December 16, the Paris criminal court examined a complaint filed by a France 3 journalist against the magazine Maroc Hebdo.
The case dates back to 2007: following a France 3 report regarding a new judicial development in the Ben Barka case, the report’s author, Joseph Tual, became the target of numerous attacks from the Moroccan press. Were these attempts at destabilization by Morocco? This theory is bolstered by the publication of new documents from @chris_coleman24, the source behind the « Moroccan Wikileaks. »
December 16, 2014, at the Paris criminal court, the discussion revolved around a case from 7 years ago, linked to an affair dating back to… 1965. That year, Mehdi Ben Barka, the main opponent of the King of Morocco, Hassan II, was kidnapped in the heart of Paris. By whom? Where is his body? These are the central questions of the judicial investigation, which is still ongoing in France.
The PF3 Taboo
On October 22 and 23, 2007, while Nicolas Sarkozy was on an official visit to Morocco, France 3 provided an update on the Ben Barka investigation. It revealed that the French investigating judge in charge of the case, Patrick Ramaël, had issued arrest warrants for five Moroccan dignitaries, including General Benslimane, head of the Royal Gendarmerie, and a certain Miloud Tounzi. Tounzi was identified as the famous Larbi Chtouki, the primary organizer of Ben Barka’s kidnapping, who was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment in 1966 during a trial in Paris.
France 3 journalist Joseph Tual, who has been investigating the Ben Barka affair for over twenty years, also highlighted in two reports the existence of a former secret prison in Rabat called PF3. It is alleged that Ben Barka might be buried there, along with nearly 250 opponents of the regime, including students from prominent Moroccan families. According to our information, the French judiciary even requested satellite surveillance to ensure that the current wasteland—owned by the Moroccan Royal Gendarmerie—remains as is, since French authorities have been unable to visit the site to conduct excavations. A highly sensitive subject. The proof? For filming this secret detention center, Tual is now persona non grata on Moroccan soil.
« The PF3 prison is the absolute taboo, » Tual told @si. « All my troubles start from there. » Those troubles involved numerous attacks from the Moroccan press following the broadcast of his reports. The daily Assabah labeled him an « agent of the Algerian secret services » (Tual later won a defamation suit against them). Maroc Hebdo International went further, publishing an article titled « Profession: Shit-stirrer, » which remains online and includes transcripts of a conversation between Tual and Miloud Tounzi.
According to the transcripts of this phone call from October 19, 2007, Tual warned Tounzi that an arrest warrant would be issued for him in a few days and suggested he leave Moroccan territory because his life was in danger. This excerpt is particularly awkward for the France 3 journalist: it implies he was in collusion with the investigating judge.
Judicial Harassment
Following the publication of that article, Tual filed several complaints. In 2008, the publication director of Maroc Hebdo, Mohamed Selhami, was convicted of public insult. In 2009, Tual also filed a complaint for « breach of privacy of correspondence » and « invasion of privacy, » as the conversation was not intended for the public. At the time, Tual told the AFP that the conversation had been « truncated » and his words « distorted to manipulate opinion. » This is the specific branch of the case recently examined by the Paris criminal court.
This latest judicial step is part of a long list of trials between Tual and Tounzi, the latter of whom also filed complaints against the journalist for « violation of the presumption of innocence » and « public insult. » To date, Tual has won every trial.
WAS MAROC HEBDO’S LAWYER PAID BY MOROCCAN INTELLIGENCE?
According to Tual, these trials have a specific goal: « The name of the game is to destabilize me, to put pressure on me. » But who exactly is behind it? Documents released by the Moroccan Wikileaks may provide the beginning of an answer. The leaker known as « Chris Coleman » published documents suggesting that the lawyer for Maroc Hebdo is paid by… Moroccan intelligence services, who appear determined to make life difficult for the France 3 journalist.
Among these documents is an expense report dated December 27, 2011, sent by the law firm Normand & Associés to Yassine Mansouri, director of the DGED (Moroccan foreign intelligence). These legal fees amount to 3,900 euros and mention an « invoice from Me Bosselut. » Bosselut is precisely the lawyer representing Maroc Hebdo in the case against Tual, which was already under investigation in 2011.
Is the document authentic? After verifying the PDF file data, it appears the document has not been tampered with. However, several questions remain:
- Why would Normand & Associés issue such an invoice when none of its lawyers worked for Maroc Hebdo in the various cases against Tual?
- Why does Me Bosselut appear on their invoices when he does not work for Normand & Associés?
- Is Normand & Associés acting as a front to mask the links between Bosselut and Moroccan intelligence?
An additional detail: lawyer Ralph Boussier, whose signature appears at the bottom of the Normand & Associés fee note, is « one of the members of the Franco-Moroccan legal collective representing the Moroccan Kingdom, » according to RFI. He is the one who took a public stand earlier this year on behalf of Abdellatif Hammouchi, head of the DGST (Moroccan domestic intelligence).
Accused of torture by a Sahrawi activist supported by a French NGO, Hammouchi mandated Boussier to file a complaint for « slanderous denunciation » in France. This establishes the Boussier-Morocco connection. From there, one might consider the Normand & Associés document credible and not a forgery…
When contacted by @si to verify the document’s authenticity, the Normand & Associés firm checked the case number (20071097) on the fee note. « A priori, it does not come from us, » they stated after a few minutes. Lawyer Ralph Boussier was unavailable at the time of publication, as was Me Rodolphe Bosselut, the lawyer for Maroc Hebdo.
Sébastien Rochat
Source: Arrêt sur images, 18/12/2014