Sale — The Saharawi political prisons, currently incarcerated in Morocco's prison of Sale 2, appealed to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to open "an independent investigation" to the Moroccan forces' attack on Gdeim Izik protest camp on November 2010, in a letter marking the 64th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The letter called on Mr. Ki-moon to open "an independent investigation in what happened during Moroccan forces' attack on Gdeim izik camp and the subsequent events took place in the occupied city of El Aaaiun, as well as all the gross violations of human rights that accompanied the attack and holding those Moroccan officials involved accountable.

The group, which includes 24 prisoners, called for "enabling the Saharawi people their inalienable right to self-determination, through free, transparent and fair referendum, by which sons of this people can choose freely their future, like all peoples of the world."

The letter pointed out to the need to "protect human rights in the occupied Western Sahara, through extending the mandates of MINURSO to be able to monitor and report about the situation of human rights in the occupied Territory."

The prisoners also appealed to UN chief to "immediately intervene with the Moroccan state for our release and all the Saharawi political prisoners, led by Yahya Mohamed el-Hafed Izaa, and reveal the fate of Saharawi abducted and disappeared."