The Human Rights Association for the Assistance of Prisoners Campaign

Hand in Hand ... Egypt without Torture

  Cairo: 9 / 5 /2004
 

 The administrative court begins the session of Tuesday May 11^th, 2004 to consider a case filed by HRAAP against the Ministry of Interior and the Yemeni Embassy to determine the destiny of the brigadier/ Ahmed Salem Ebaid, Yemeni Vice-Minister of Defense and the Ex-Minister of Information, after he has disappeared in ambiguous circumstances in Egypt.

On 31/3/2004, HRAAP filed a case against the Ministry of Interior and the Yemeni Embassy to determine the destiny of the brigadier/ Ahmed Salem Ebaid, Yemeni Vice-Minister of Defense and the Ex-Minister of Information, who resided in Egypt since 1994 after the military conflicts between the two parts of Yemen before unity, after he has disappeared in ambiguous circumstances in Egypt. The case was registered in 16247/58, individual's dispute’s circle, but the date of the session has not been set yet.

 The incidents date back to 18/2/2004, when the brother of brigadier Ahmed Salem Ebaid received from his brother and told him that he cannot return to his residence that day because of his circumstances, where he was accompanied with a friend and did not show any other reasons, and then his brother asked him for his phone number that he was speaking from and the address of his friend. But the disappeared did not answer him and ended the phone call without getting the wanted information. However, the aforementioned person disappeared for more than three days without knowing any thing about him. Then, his brother received another phone call from the disappeared and told him that he is staying with the (group) –this word is known within his family as the security authority- and asked him to say the names of his drugs- where he suffers many diseases including the high pressure, diabetes and glaucoma-. Then, by this phone call his brother did know anything about him, and that is what urged him and his daughter to report to the Egyptian authority the disappearance incident, in Al-Dokky police station in 21/2/2004 and it was registered in 1263/2004, Al-Dokky administrative, he also reported to the Yemeni Embassy in Cairo but both of them did not give any information to determine his destiny. On the other hand, some Egyptian, Yemeni and Saudi newspapers published news declare that the disappeared was extradited to the Yemeni authorities considering him one of the Yemeni oppositions as a deal to exchange Islamic characters wanted by the Egyptian government and exist in Yemen.

On 7/3/2004, the Saudi newspaper “Al Watan” said that the Egyptian authority extradited the brigadier/ Ahmed Salem Ebaid to Yemen, and said that the Yemeni embassy in Cairo denied knowing that.

On the other hand, HRAAP submitted a complaint to the consultant the Attorney-General and the brigadier the minister of interior as well as a letter to the Yemeni embassy to determine the destiny of the disappeared.

As a confirmation to the right of the disappeared family to know the place of theirs, HRAAP filed a case according to a proxy from the brother of the disappeared requesting the Egyptian government represented by the ministry of Interior and the Yemeni embassy in Cairo to determine the destiny of the disappeared. HRAAP relied on the obligations and commitments of both Egypt and Yemen to protect this person as well as law and constitution, where they are responsible for what happen on their lands. Because the brother of the disappeared submitted an official complaint to the Egyptian authorities requesting to know the fate of his brother s, but they did not avail him, specially there are justifications entails exerting heavy efforts to protect this person and occupied high positions in Yemen during serious period, that is why he transferred to Egypt since 1994, Bearing in mind that he is classified in Yemen as one of the outstanding figures of opposition to the present government. All these reasons oblige the Egyptian authority to take the necessary procedures and guarantees to protect him. 

As for the Yemeni Embassy, it is responsible for its citizens abroad and risks may happen to them, and eliminate all handicaps and problems facing them that may degrade them, according to the humanitarian and international measurements. However, it did not exert any thing in this respect. The Yemeni Embassy in Cairo is responsible for the disappearance of this person on the light of what is published in newspapers concerning extraditing his brother to Yemeni authorities in return for extraditing Islamic characters wanted by the Egyptian government, and that is opposing the international laws and charters specially the international covenant for the civil and political rights.

 The human rights association for the assistance of prisoners