Weeks after walking free from a Moroccan prison following a royal pardon granted on Eid al-Fitr, terrorism convict Abdelkader Belliraj has received a Belgian passport, Belgian Justice Minister Annelies Verlinden confirmed on Tuesday. The 67-year-old, who holds both Moroccan and Belgian nationalities, was sentenced to life in prison in 2010. After his release, he contacted the Belgian embassy in Rabat, which issued him a passport. «The man has Belgian nationality and also has family in our country», Minister Verlinden told the Justice Committee, responding to a question from Vlaams Belang MP Alexander Van Hoecke. While it remains unclear whether Belliraj intends to return to Belgium, Verlinden assured the committee that «the relevant security services, including State Security, are well aware of the risk and are assessing the measures and actions that can be taken in the event of a return». She added that the matter «will be discussed with our Moroccan partners if necessary», emphasizing that the royal pardon was a sovereign decision by Morocco. «There are clear signals that Belliraj plans to return soon», Van Hoecke warned. «This is a man sentenced to life for terrorism and suspected of political assassinations. For the victims, this pardon sends a very strange signal». At the time of his release, alongside 33 terrorism and extremism-convicted detainees, Morocco's Ministry of Justice stated that these individuals had expressed their commitment to the «fundamental principles and sacred values of the Nation and national institutions», officially renouncing extremism and terrorism. The Belliraj case first drew public attention in 2008, when then-Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa announced the dismantling of what he called «one of the most dangerous terrorist organizations recently neutralized». Thirty-five men were arrested. belliraj's sentence was later reduced to 25 years in 2022. Article modifié le 24/04/2025 à 17h06
