Vulnerable young Saharawi kidnapped ,tourtered and sentenced prison
Moroccan « General Delegation for Prison Administration and Reintegration » has transferred a Saharawi detainee on Monday, January 25, from the Black Prison in El Aaiun in occupied Western Sahara to the local prison in Tan Tan, south of Morocco without any notice having been given to his family.
On November 14, 2020 special Moroccan police raided Ahmed El Gargar family’s home while he was asleep and got him for questioning of being suspected to participate in a peaceful demonstration taking place in El Aaiun to express solidarity with Polisario’s decision of resumption of the armed struggle.
Although his mother told them Ahmed is suffering from mental disorders, his interrogators subjected him to physical and mental torture in police headquarter leaving him unconscious for 4 days.
His mother has been permitted to visit him one time in the Black Prison. He was in bad shape; he could not talk or explain anything to his mother for fear of retaliation of the guardians who were watching them.
Once he was transferred to Tan Tan prison her mom has heard no subsequent news on him
She is even more concerned because during this cold weather Ahmed has no adequate clothing to keep warm. She believes that her son is running a real danger and that he can still be subject to inhuman treatment. And he cannot fend for himself.
She told Equipe Media « My son has infantile characteristics » and this is a painful thing. When I met him, he thought he would come with me but I am helpless.
It is his first time in prison and he was nervous. He was held on criminal charges like murder, robbery, and drug smuggling.
On December 9, 2020, in a videoconference trial, a Moroccan court in occupied El Aaiun sentenced Ahmed El Gargar to 10 months’ imprisonment. The court based its decision on police reports that contained confessions extracted under torture and El Gargar did not have access to any of the documents allegedly implicating him during the investigation.
Équipe Média, El Aaiun
occupied Western Sahara
February 3, 2020
