Sahrawi activist Abdullah Lekhfaouni, prisoner of the “Gdeim Izik group”, is enduring critical humanitarian and health crisis in the central prison of Kénitra. Formal complaints filed by his mother Aliya Al-Radâa point out that Lekhfaouni has been systematically deprived of basic human rights.
In letters to the King’s Prosecutor at the Court of Appeal in Rabat and to the General Delegate for Prison Administration, Al-Radâa described the harrowing conditions her son was being subjected to: He went on a hunger strike for 48 hours. Then, he was taken to the prison hospital where he was left on the floor for 24 hours without even a blanket, along with inmates infected with tuberculosis and severe mental illnesses, which evidently put his health in grave jeopardy. He didn’t receive any care and was returned to a cell, in complete isolation.
The complaints further underlined that, in this cell -full of rats-, the prison staff have subjected Lekhfaouni to handcuffs behind his back and blindfolding; prolonged sleep deprivation; denial of phone calls for several days; and confiscation of bedding and basic necessities.
One complaint, obtained by Equipe Media, states the following:
“The staff at the central prison in Kénitra proceeded to isolate Abdullah Lekhfaouni in a room full of rats, with his hands bound and his eyes blindfolded, deprived of all his legitimate rights.”
Despite the severity of these accusations described by the family as “retaliatory treatment”, Al-Radâa states that there has been no response from authorities, nor have any steps been taken to improve his detention conditions.
Lekhfaouni’s family has now escalated an appeal to international human rights bodies for intervention, calling for an investigation into the alleged violations and immediate protection to grant him his basic legal rights.