Dr. Abdel Basset Imam, an Egyptian doctor with Turkish citizenship, faces deportation to Egypt after he was recently arrested at Casablanca airport in Morocco while on vacation.
Dr. Imam was detained by Moroccan authorities on the basis of an arrest warrant issued by Egyptian authorities, who seek his extradition in political cases.
A former professor at Al-Azhar University’s Faculty of Medicine, Dr. Abdel Basset Imam, is wanted in Egypt after being found guilty in fabricated cases and given a life sentence.
Given his difficult health condition, Imam’s family has expressed serious concerns that he will be deported to Egypt, where he is likely to endure cruel treatment or torture. Given that Dr. Imam is 62 years old and has high blood pressure, it is important to note that his deportation to Egypt would put his health at serious risk.
As a signatory to the Convention against Torture, Morocco pledges not to deport anyone who could be subjected to torture in their home nation. According to Article 3 of the Convention, states parties are prohibited from extradicting or expelling someone to another country where there is a genuine risk that they will be tortured.
Dr. Abdel Basset Imam is a father of four children, one of whose sons was killed in the dispersal of the Rabaa sit-in in Egypt in 2013, which further complicates the family’s ordeal.
