Intelligence service of Saddam Hussein case

Concerning Mr. A.A vs Denmark for violation of articles 2, 12 and 16 of CAT.

The author had nine friends who worked for the intelligence service of Saddam Hussein and served in his palaces. When visiting one of them in 1995, he was detained, as it turned out that these friends were members of the Communist Party. The author was tortured in order to have him confess that he also belonged to the Communist Party. All nine of his friends were executed and the author was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment for holding back information on them. During the first two years of imprisonment, he was exposed to severe torture, including kicks to the crotch and beating with electrical wires.He got rejected his asylum request in Denmark, as Saddam Hussein’s regime was no longer in power. The Board also stated that the complainant could reside in another part of Iraq. 

The communication was declared inadmissible because the Committee notes that in 2009 the complainant had submitted that he would be exposed to a risk of torture exclusively based on threats from the families of his friends who were executed in 1995. The Committee observes that the complainant has failed to substantiate that there are grounds for believing that there is a risk of torture.

20. July 2021

CAT 412/2010
  • Decision: 6. February 2013
  • Comm: Torture