Spain Court Dismisses Morocco Case Against Journalist

A general view during a partial lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Madrid, Spain, October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Javier Barbancho
A general view during a partial lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Madrid, Spain, October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Javier Barbancho
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Spain Court Dismisses Morocco Case Against Journalist

A general view during a partial lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Madrid, Spain, October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Javier Barbancho
A general view during a partial lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Madrid, Spain, October 3, 2020. REUTERS/Javier Barbancho

A Madrid court has dismissed a case brought by Morocco against a Spanish journalist who had accused Rabat of bugging his phone with Pegasus spyware.

The ruling, seen by AFP on Thursday, acquitted 68-year-old Ignacio Cembrero, dismissing Rabat's claim he had engaged in "an act of bragging" about being the victim of phone bugging.

A spokesperson for the law firm representing Rabat told AFP Morocco would appeal the ruling.

The lawsuit had its roots in an explosive 2021 investigation by Forbidden Stories, a consortium of 17 Western media outlets, which found that more than 50,000 people -- including activists, journalists, executives and politicians -- might have been spied on using software developed by Israeli firm NSO.

Since then, Cembrero has repeatedly stated, and even told the European Parliament, that Morocco was behind the bugging, while admitting he had no formal proof.

But Rabat has denied that it had bought the software.

In her ruling, dated March 10, judge Sonia Lence Munoz said, "The various statements by the defendant... were in response to the publication of a journalistic investigation by an international group -- Forbidden Stories -- about people who were spied on with Pegasus software."

Such remarks were "justified by the gravity of the facts which led not only to a criminal investigation.”



US Sanctions Russia-Based Network for Helping Yemen’s Houthis

Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
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US Sanctions Russia-Based Network for Helping Yemen’s Houthis

Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)

The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on Russia-based people and entities working to help procure weapons and commodities - including stolen Ukrainian grain - for Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis, the Treasury Department said.

The operatives, who included Russia-based Afghan businessman Hushang Ghairat and his brother, Russia-based Afghan businessman Sohrab Ghairat, helped senior Houthi official Sa’id al-Jamal, procure millions of dollars’ worth of commodities from Russia for shipment to Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen, Treasury said.

The goods included weapons and sensitive goods, as well as stolen Ukrainian grain, the department said in a statement.

"The Houthis remain reliant on Sa’id al-Jamal and his network to procure critical goods to supply the group’s terrorist war machine," said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. "Today’s action underscores our commitment to degrading the Houthis’ ability to threaten the region through their destabilizing activities."