Fez – Moroccan rapper RAID has issued a public statement ahead of his appearance at the Casablanca Court of Appeal tomorrow, September 17, reaffirming his innocence and calling for his defence rights to be respected. The artist said the third hearing in his appeal proceedings was scheduled for 9 a.m. in courtroom 1, with his defence team absent because its members are participating in a professional strike.
“I reaffirm my firm confidence in my innocence and my full commitment to all my rights,” he wrote in the Arabic statement, reposted by music platform Geniusmaroc. “I also stress the necessity of respecting defence rights, the presumption of innocence, and proper procedures.”
RAID said these safeguards were necessary to ensure that justice remained grounded in “law and fairness, within the full guarantees of a fair trial.” His message places the conditions of the upcoming hearing at the centre of his concerns, particularly the absence of the lawyers representing him.
The statement does not indicate whether his defence team has requested an adjournment or whether the court intends to proceed without them. It announces his planned attendance while maintaining his position on both his innocence and his procedural rights.
The proceedings follow a case connected to the GenZ212 protests in 2025. RAID, also known as Hamza Raid, was arrested in Casablanca in late September before appearing before prosecutors on October 1. He was subsequently released pending trial.
Reporting at the time, citing people close to the artist, identified the accusations as participation in an unauthorised unarmed gathering and incitement to commit crimes and offences through electronic means. His arrest prompted supporters to share messages calling for his release under the hashtag #Free_Raid.
In November 2025, he was given a one-month suspended prison sentence in connection with the protests, with plans to appeal reported at the time.
Alongside his music, RAID has worked as a teacher, rugby player, and coach. Those different parts of his life featured in accounts of the mobilisation around his arrest, as supporters followed a case that had taken him from the music scene into criminal proceedings.
His latest statement offers no new account of the events underlying the prosecution. Instead, ahead of Thursday’s hearing, the rapper has focused on the principles he wants upheld as his appeal continues: the ability to defend himself, respect for the presumption of innocence, and the guarantees of a fair trial.
