The Association reacted, in a letter addressed to the Charge d'Affaires at the US Embassy in Rabat, David Greene, to the statement of the spokesperson of the US Department of State concerning two defendants, the first of whom was sentenced, in the first instance, to five years in prison for a common law case, while the second is currently on trial.

"If everyone, in a personal capacity, has the right to express his or her point of view, we feel it is appropriate to point out that a hasty assessment, in the form of a bias, is in no way appropriate for a senior official who, moreover, is making a statement in the name of the United States of America," it stressed.

The Bayt Al Hikma Association, which recalled that it attaches great importance to the history and excellent level of relations between the United States and Morocco, expressed its astonishment at the statement of the spokesperson of the US State Department, which concerns common law cases.

In this regard, it noted that it has followed the case (…), calling for fair treatment with full respect for the rights of all parties, without discrimination and without reference to the status of one party or the other, even though other voices have tried to reverse the roles in this case, knowing that justice is one and indivisible according to international agreements.

"Based on this premise, we believe that both the substance and the form of the US State Department spokesperson's statement are inappropriate," the Association said.

It said that the opinion of the US official "also departs from the diplomatic decorum that should govern relations between sovereign States. A propriety, it added, which requires mutual respect between two States linked by relations that are two centuries old.

Surprised by these statements, the Bayt Al Hikma Association expressed its rejection of "any interference, by any party, in the internal affairs" of Morocco. "Even less, any form of interference in the Moroccan justice system" which, by the force of the Kingdom's Constitution, is "independent and could not, therefore, be subjected to foreign pressure", it said.

"We therefore believe that, in view of the course of the case, the Kingdom's judicial authorities have taken pains to emphasize that all the conditions required for impartiality have been met," the Association said in its letter, noting that it is not the opinion of one party that should take precedence over the rights of the other party.

Recalling the great importance it attaches to the excellent level of Moroccan-American relations, the Association affirmed that it remains "open to any action that would make it possible to build a lasting and continuous dialogue which will enable us in the future to exchange and carry out joint actions on the matters necessary for the proper functioning of our society and for living together".