carried out arbitrary arrests and detentions." The relations between the Moroccan government and Al Jazeera seriously deteriorated and in July, Brahim Sbaalil, a spokesperson for the Islamist-leaning Centre Marocain des Droits Humain (CMDH) that had echoed the claims, was condemned to six months in prison for "spreading false accusations". Unique Sea Cable Car System To better utilize its ocean-shipping potential, Spanish authorities in the 1960s conceived and installed a unique ship-offloading system in the shallow waters of the Sidi Ifni port. Since the waters were too shallow to allow ships to reach shore, a concrete bastion was built at 550 meters offshore. It held a derrick and crane. Cargo and personnel were lifted from a ship, then moved to another station near the cliffs east of town, using self-propelled carts slung from large steel cables. The cables were supported by several pylons. This system ran for a few years (until Spain finally ceded the territory to Morocco), then fell into disrepair. The cables have disappeared, but the end stations and pylons are still visible. Climate Influenced by the cold Canary Current, Sidi Ifni has a hot desert climate (Köppen BWh) with mild to warm weather all year round, and very slight, erratic rainfall. This rain falls only during the winter months from November to April, and generally is significant only when the North Atlantic Oscillation is negative and drives the winter frontal storms (that normally remain well north of central Morocco) into the region. Gallery References External links Ifni Friend's Association (Asociación de Amigos de Ifni) The Corner of Sidi Ifni (El Rincón de Sidi Ifni) Lexicorient Municipalities of Morocco Populated places in Sidi Ifni Province Sidi Ifni 1860 establishments in the Spanish Empire