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A United Arab Emirates major general prosecuted by two Britons for allegations of torture and ill-treatment has been elected president of Interpol.
Ahmed Naser al Raisi, inspector general at the UAE’s interior ministry, will serve a four-year term at the International Criminal Police Organization after winning a vote in Turkey.
Mr. al Raisi, a member of the Interpol executive committee, has been accused of playing a role in the mistreatment of Matthew Hedges and Ali Issa Ahmad during their detention in the United Arab Emirates.
Image: (LR) Ali Issa Ahmad and Matthew Hedges both say they were mistreated
Mr Hedges, 34, was a doctoral student jailed in the United Arab Emirates for almost seven months in 2018 after being accused of espionage.
Mr Ahmad, 29, of Wolverhampton, says he was arrested in 2019 for wearing a T-shirt with a Qatari flag when the two Middle Eastern countries were engaged in a diplomatic row.
Mr Hedges, an academic at the University of Exeter, said he and his family had been threatened “by the Emirati security services in a building for which Naser al Raisi (…) is responsible” in 2018.
“The possibility of Al Raisi becoming president of Interpol sets an extremely dangerous precedent where systematic abuses are legitimized and normalized for other states to continue to use around the world.”
Mr. Ahmad says he was shocked, beaten, and deprived of food, water and sleep.
The couple have launched legal proceedings against Mr al Raisi in Turkey – their lawyer Rodney Dixon said his clients would “redouble their efforts to seek justice for their tortures and prosecute General al Raisi in national courts wherever he goes in his new position “.
Legal proceedings are also initiated against Mr. al Raisi in four other countries, including France.
A spokesman for the United Arab Emirates said any legal complaint against “Raisi is without merit and will be dismissed.”
Human Rights Watch and the Gulf Center for Human Rights said in May that Mr. al Raisi’s election would cast doubt on Interpol’s commitment to human rights.
Mr al Raisi won after three rounds of voting, with Interpol claiming to have received 68.9% of the votes cast in the last round.
He said: “Interpol is an indispensable organization built on the strength of its partnerships. It is this spirit of collaboration, united in mission, that I will continue to foster as we work to make a safer world for individuals and communities.
On a daily basis, Interpol is managed by its secretary general, currently the German Jurgen Stock.
The president exercises a supervisory role, guides the general management while chairing its general assemblies and the meeting of the executive committee.
About 470 police chiefs, ministers and other representatives from more than 160 countries were at the top to elect the new president, with each country getting one vote.
Mr. al Raisi will replace South Korean Kim Jong Yan, a vice president who took over the post when China’s Meng Hongwei disappeared mid-term in 2018 in his home country.
Image: The Interpol annual meeting in Istanbul, Turkey. Photo: AP
He was then accused of corruption and other crimes by the regime.
A Chinese government-backed minister, Hu Binchen, has now been elected to Interpol’s executive committee as delegate for Asia.
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