Ali Sabah AbdulMohsen Mohamed was a 37-year-old retiree working as a mechanic; when the Bahraini authorities arrested him without a warrant at his home in 2013. Ali is currently being held in Jau Prison.
On the night of 29 December 2013, Ali was at home when crime scene and investigation officers, along with riot police, conducted a raid at 10pm. Despite not producing a warrant or stating the reason for the arrest, the officers raided the flat and arrested Ali, his father and siblings. His family members were released, but Ali was detained. He later learned that he was wanted for joining a terrorist group.
After Ali’s arrest, his family sought him out at the Budaiya police station, where they learned that he was being held after the arrest, but the officers denied that he was at the police station. Two days after his arrest, he called me and told his family that he was fine while he was in interrogation sessions. Ali then disappeared for 11 days, during which he was interrogated.
During the interrogation, Ali was tortured by the agents of the Criminal Investigation Directorate. He was severely beaten and deprived of sleep. Ali was interrogated without a lawyer, as he was forbidden to contact him after his arrest. Torture was used to obtain a coerced confession in the case Ali was accused of; he eventually confessed, and his confession was used against him at trial.
On 29 September 2014, Ali was sentenced to life imprisonment. Throughout the trial, Ali was denied access to his lawyer and was not given adequate time and facilities to prepare for the trial. The Court of Appeal upheld the sentence in his case, and the application for cassation was rejected.
Since his arrest and detention, Ali has been the victim of various human rights violations, including medical negligence and physical and psychological torture. As a result, Ali developed a number of medical conditions, in addition to the worsening of pre-existing conditions, namely irritable bowel syndrome which he has suffered from since he was 18 years old, as well as allergies. In addition, Ali now suffers from swelling in his face and neck, is unable to breathe and has been denied medical attention, putting his life in grave danger. His condition has been aggravated by the administration’s failure to provide him with adequate medical treatment and proper meals. His family has filed several complaints over the years, but without success.
Ali’s detention, unfair trial and torture violate both the Bahraini Constitution and international obligations to which Bahrain is a party, namely the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Since no arrest warrant was presented and Ali was not granted a fair trial, he is being arbitrarily detained by the Bahraini authorities.
Accordingly, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) calls on Bahrain to comply with its human rights obligations by quashing the sentence against Ali. If serious criminal charges can be brought against him, the authorities must conduct a fair retrial that conforms to universal judicial standards. ADHRB urges Bahrain to investigate all allegations of torture to ensure accountability and to provide all prisoners with adequate medical care, while guaranteeing all their basic human rights.
