Equatorial Guinea: Two deported from the U.S. beaten, according to Amnesty

Two men deported from the United States to Equatorial Guinea were arrested on September 11 in Malabo and subsequently beaten by police, according to Amnesty International and their lawyers. Ahmed Soliman, an Egyptian national, and Samson Birhane, an Eritrean national, were held at the Bamy hotel along with others transferred by Washington.

Amnesty claims that police accused the two men of breaking a mirror in the hotel, covered their heads with a bag, and struck them on the head, back, and ribs. They were reportedly taken to the La Luna gendarmerie, where they are being held in an overcrowded cell and have been unable to speak to their lawyer.

Lawyers representing the deported individuals also told the Associated Press that Soliman and Birhane were beaten following their arrest. According to Reuters, the spokesperson for the Equatorial Guinean government and the country’s embassy in Washington had not responded by Friday to requests for comments regarding Soliman’s detention.

Amnesty believes that the two men were targeted in retaliation for having reported threats and violence aimed at pressuring them to accept a return to their home countries. This assessment has not been subject to a publicly released judicial ruling.

The case highlights the tensions already reported earlier in September at the Bamy hotel. On September 5, police had drawn their weapons during a confrontation related to the confiscation of phones, according to testimonies and footage reviewed by Reuters. Soliman had filmed part of the incident before his arrest a few days later.

More than 40 people have been sent by the United States to Equatorial Guinea as part of a third-country agreement valued at $7.5 million, according to the Associated Press. Several had obtained protection from deportation to their home country through U.S. courts. Their lawyers assert that twelve individuals have nonetheless already been sent back to their country.