Arrest and beating of human rights defender Mr Yacine Zaid

On the morning of 1 October 2012, human rights defender Mr Yacine Zaid was arrested and brutally beaten by three policemen in Ouargla.

At the time of his arrest, he was travelling on a bus with Mr. Aibek Abdelmalek, a member of the Comité National pour la Défense des Droits des Chômeurs – CNDDC (National Committee for the Defence of the Rights of the Unemployed). At approximately 09:30 AM, three policemen in civilian attire forced them to disembark the bus and they proceeded to insult, interrogate and beat Mr Yacine Zaid, all whilst he was handcuffed. He was then placed in a white Nissan 4x4 and taken to an unknown location.

Mr Yacine Zaid is President of the Laghouat section of the Ligue Algérienne pour la défense des droits de l’Homme – LADDH (Algerian League for the Defence of Human Rights) and a participant in the 2011 Front Line Defenders Dublin Platform.

Front Line Defenders believes that the arbitrary arrest and beating of Mr Yacine Zaid were directly related to his legitimate and peaceful work in the defence of human rights. Yacine Zaid's human rights work included a peaceful sit-down protest in front of the Court of Sidi Mohamed in Algiers last April calling for the release of fellow human rights defender Mr Abdelkader Kherba, who has also been the subject of a Front Line Defenders appeal.

Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Algeria to:

Immediately and unconditionally release Yacine Zaid, as it is believed that his arrest and detention are solely motivated by his peaceful and legitimate human rights work;

Carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the arrest and beating of human rights defender Yacine Zaid, with a view to publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards;

Take all necessary measures to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity and security of Yacine Zaid;

Cease targeting all human rights defenders in Algeria and guarantee in all circumstances that they are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions including judicial harassment.