European body ready to press for release of Moroccan POWs in Algeria

A European body said it will continue efforts for the release of all Moroccan prisoners of war still detained in the Tindouf camps (southwestern Algeria) by the Polisario separatists.

The Passport for Freedom initiative "will remain very active" to obtain the release of all prisoners still detained in Tindouf, member of the European parliament, Ms. Dominique Rimbaud, said in a release sent to MAP.

Some 243 Moroccan POWs were released recently by the Polisario, while 914 others are still in captivity in Tindouf.

Rimbaud lauded the release of captain Mimoun Zeggai, to whom the body had issued a Passport for Freedom. Zeggai was the longest serving Moroccan POWs in Tindouf. He was captured in 1976.

Incepted in 2000, Passport for Freedom is an initiative backed by several members of the European Parliament. It was promoted by Euro-MP Alain Madelin.