French Justice Ministry reaffirms limits in Ben Barka case, cites judicial independence

France’s Justice Ministry has said it cannot intervene in individual cases or issue directives concerning them, citing the separation of powers and judicial independence.

The statement came in response to a parliamentary question about the 1965 disappearance in Paris of Moroccan leftist opposition leader Mehdi Ben Barka.

In a recent written reply published on the National Assembly’s website and reviewed by Hespress AR, the ministry stressed that it maintains “excellent bilateral relations” with its Moroccan counterpart, which enable “regular and constructive exchanges” on judicial cooperation requests from French courts. The ministry added that it pays “particular attention to cooperation in this case” through the liaison magistrate based in Morocco.

The question was submitted by Hadrien Clouet, a lawmaker from the left-wing France Insoumise party, who asked whether France would consider declassifying defense documents related to the case and act on international judicial cooperation requests.

He argued that “the persistence of secrecy obstructs justice,” noting that Ben Barka’s family, particularly his son Bachir, has long pressed for further clarification.

“On Oct. 29, 1965, Mehdi Ben Barka was abducted in central Paris on his way to a meeting in a café. His body was never found, the perpetrators were never brought to justice, and the case remains open,” Clouet wrote in his submission. He added that withholding classified defense documents “directly prevents judicial authorities from delivering a ruling,” while the family has struggled for decades to obtain justice. Ben Barka’s widow, Ghita Bennani, died earlier this year without knowing the truth, he noted.

Clouet also referred to a letter sent by Bachir Ben Barka to President Emmanuel Macron urging action. He recalled that Macron had previously pledged transparency by declassifying archives and acknowledging French responsibility in several political assassinations, such as those of Thomas Sankara and Ali Boumendjel.

“It seems only legitimate that the same be done in the Ben Barka case,” the lawmaker said, insisting “France should hide nothing.”

The deputy asked whether the Justice Ministry supported lifting secrecy protections on national defense documents, whether it would submit the Ben Barka case to the relevant advisory commission, and whether it planned to formally respond to Bachir Ben Barka’s letter, “to make up for the lack of respect shown by the president on this matter.”