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Syrian Kurd tortured and sentenced to
imprisonment after being returned to Syria, from
Cyprus
31.3.2010
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March
31, 2010
LONDON, — Amnesty International: Urgent
Action for Berzani Karro Tuesday, 30 March 2010.
Berzani Karro, who was tortured in custody, has been
sentenced to two-and-a-half years' imprisonment for
"attempting to sever part of the Syrian territory
and annex it to a foreign state." Berzani Karro was
brought before a military court on 14 March, and
sentenced to five years' imprisonment, immediately
commuted to two-and-a-half years. |
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According to sources in
Syria, Berzani Karro was beaten for hours at a time
while he was detained incommunicado for
interrogation, between June and September 2009. He
was held in al-Fayha Political Security Branch in
the capital, Damascus. He is now allowed regular
visits from his family and has had access to his
lawyer.
Berzani Karro was convicted on charges commonly used
against Kurds who appear to be politically active
and critical of the state. He has now been
imprisoned on the basis of his presumed political
opinions. He was tried by a military court,www.ekurd.netwhose
procedures are known to fall short of international
standards. Military courts are known to accept
"confessions" as evidence, even when defendants say
they made them under torture.
Berzani Karro had been forcibly returned from
Cyprus, and arrested on arrival at Damascus Airport
on 27 June 2009. He had applied for asylum in
Cyprus, but been rejected, and this was the
justification used for returning him. Cypriot
officials escorted him on the plane, and handed him
over to the Syrian authorities at Damascus airport.
This is the third update of UA 257/09. Further
information: http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/MDE24/024/2009/en
————————————-
East Mediterranean Team
Amnesty International, International Secretariat
Peter Benenson House, 1 Easton Street
London WC1X 0DW
United Kingdom
E-mail: Eastmed@amnesty.org
Tel: +44 (0)20 7413 5500
Fax: +44 (0)20 7413 5719
Copyright,
respective author or news agency, Amnesty
International | amnesty co.uk
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