Activists report that Moroccan authorities are intensifying repression against critical voices and the youth-led Gen Z protest movement demanding better health services and education reforms.

Politically outspoken Moroccan artist, rapper, and filmmaker Mehdi El Youbi, also known by his stage name Mehdi Black Wind, was arrested in Casablanca on Monday night, July 14, 2026. This followed his recent barring from returning to France, where he had lived since 2017. His detention occurred after questioning by Morocco’s National Brigade of Judicial Police, according to a statement from his friends and supporters.

After a day of questioning, El Youbi’s family was informed around 9pm that he had been taken into police custody and was scheduled to appear before the public prosecutor on Wednesday. The arrest is believed to be linked to his artistic views and social media posts.

El Youbi’s arrest comes a day after Moroccan journalist Ali Lmrabet was detained—a move condemned by the Committee to Protect Journalists—and two weeks after Zineb Kharroubi, a prominent figure in the Gen Z 212 activist movement, received a six-month suspended prison sentence for "incitement to commit crimes or offences by electronic means."

A supporter of El Youbi stated that these events reflect "intensified repression linked to the Gen Z movement," which emerged last year in Morocco.

Sources