Libyan Political Prisoner May Face Death
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
CAIRO, Egypt – Libyan political prisoner Fathi al-Jahmi may be facing the death penalty for the crime of consulting a foreign official and insulting the Libyan president, Muammar Gadhafi.
Human Rights Watch this week learned that Mr. al-Jahmi faces charges under section 206 of Libya’s penal code, which would carry a sentence of death for anyone engaged “in the establishment of any grouping, organization or association proscribed by law.”
Mr. al-Jahmi was arrested in March 2004 for criticizing the regime on Arab satellite television stations in interviews that he gave shortly after an appeals court released him from prison. His release and subsequent rearrest took place only a few months after Libya agreed to dismantle its nuclear weapons program in exchange for normalizing ties with America.
Doctors who visited Mr. al-Jahmi last year said his detention was aggravating his heart condition. His family says they have not seen him since June.
