Spain deports activist Mohamed Benhalima to Algeria

03/25/2022 at 10:00

CET


The Government of Spain has deported Algeria former military officer and anti-corruption activist Mohamed Benhalima. It happened this Friday night, when an Algerian YouTube channel published a video of his arrival. Organizations such as Amnesty International and CIEs had NOT embraced the cause to prevent his deportation, since that Benhalima fears being imprisoned and tortured in a jail your country’s militaryas he explained to this newspaper and has happened with the precedents of deported opponents.

Benhalima fled Algeria in 2019. The former soldier had disclosed alleged cases of corruption in the Algerian army and participated in the peaceful protest movement Hirak, which filled the streets of the country “to ask for a civilian government and not a military one,” the activist recalled. A friend tipped him off that the army wanted to arrest him so he decided to run away. At the moment he is weighing down a 10-year prison sentence in the country for disclosing the corruption of the army.

He requested international protection in Spain, without success. Until recently the police stopped him at a roadblock in Zaragoza and ordered his internment at the Zapadores Foreigners Internment Center (CIE) in Valencia, from where he awaited his expulsion from the country. In the center he came to formalize another request for protection, which was also rejected. Interior has not wanted to answer the questions of this newspaper about the reasons for the rejection.

Precedents

The activist fears being imprisoned and tortured as soon as he arrives in the country, as he told this newspaper in an interview and has happened with similar precedents such as that of Mohamed Abdullah. He was deported in August 2021 from the Zona Franca CIE, he was also wanted for participating in the peaceful movement. As soon as they set foot in Algeria, international organizations began to denounce that he was being tortured in the ‘Antar’ military prison. Benhalima was afraid of suffering the same fate.

Abdellah’s deportation made Benhalima fear that the same thing would happen to him, so he decided to go to France to ask for protection there, in January this year.. European regulations require that the first state where the request was formalized must take charge, so he had to return to Spain.

Benhalima spent the last few days at the CIE in Valencia practically incommunicado. It happened after the activist recorded a video on the premises and uploaded it to his YouTube channel with 152,000 subscribers. The police seized his mobile phone only for essentials. “Algeria is a country of dictators military and do not accept other opinions, I want to ask Mr. Marlaska and Pedro Sánchez to review their decisions and save my life. my life is at risk&rdquor ;, asked Benhalima in the video.

Amnesty International has supported the case of this activist from the beginning. “The Spanish authorities are well aware of the grim fate that awaits Mohamed Benhlima if he is deported.. In the last two years, the Algerian authorities have intensified their brazen persecution of activists in their attempt to crush all forms of dissent & rdquor ;, the organization said in a statement. “Under international law, no one should be returned to a country where they are at risk of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment & rdquor ;, it adds.

An Algerian YouTube channel has broadcast a video in which Benhalima appears handcuffed getting off the plane and escorted by National Police agents. Members of the Algerian brigades take him and put him in a vehicle, as seen in the video.

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