Polisario Leader Denies Torture Allegations, Claims Diplomatic Immunity in Spanish Court

"I am neither a torturer nor a rapist, but a simple fighter for the dignity, sovereignty and independence of my people and the peoples I can help," Ghali said during his appearance, flatly rejecting the accusations of torture against him. During this hearing, the Polisario Front leader accused Morocco of being behind the two complaints filed against him, reports La Razòn.

To read: Witness Testifies: Polisario Leader Ordered Torture in Tindouf Camps

Questioned by his lawyer Manuel Ollé, Ghali claimed that the complaint of Fadel Breica, a Sahrawi activist of Spanish origin and alleged victim of torture in the Tindouf camps between June and November 2019, is "unjustified" and "unfounded". The Polisario leader had also added that he does not even know the plaintiff, "that he has not given any kind of order, that a head of state is not there to take care of everything and nothing, that he has much more important tasks", and that in no case will he renounce his "diplomatic immunity" as president of the SADR.

To read: article 82498

"We are in a trial whose sole and only purpose is political: to attack the Polisario Front and its leader who has been fighting for more than 40 years for the right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people," added Ghali’s lawyer, who seems to be pointing an accusing finger at Morocco.

Judge Pedraz had rejected the request for pre-trial detention of Ghali proposed by Fadel Breica’s lawyer, María José Malagón, on the grounds that Ghali, by having himself admitted to the hospital under a false identity, clearly shows that he is trying to "flee justice". Arguments that had not convinced the judge, who considered that Ghali has always had good cooperation with justice.