Amman, July 11 (AP): A US citizen and former top aide of Jordan’s King Abdullah II alleged that he was tortured in Jordanian detention and feared for his life, his US-based lawyer told the High Court on Sunday. I said on the eve of a verdict. The -profile treason trial is linked to a rare public rift in the state’s ruling family.
With allegations of abuse, the closed-door hearing before Jordan’s state security court “has been completely unfair,” Michael Sullivan, a former federal prosecutor appointed by the US-based family of defendant Bassem Avdallah, told the Associated Press.
Jordanian officials on Sunday denied allegations of abuse, which were raised days before the Jordanian king became the first Arab leader to meet with President Joe Biden at the White House on July 19. Jordan is a major Western ally in the unstable Middle East. .
Awdallah and co-defendant Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a distant cousin of the king, have pleaded not guilty to charges of treason and abetment, which carry long prison sentences.
The defendants were accused of conspiring with a senior royal – Prince Hamza, the king’s half-brother – to stir up unrest against the emperor while soliciting foreign help. The indictment portrays Hamza as a disgruntled royal who has never forgiven for stripping Abdullah of his crown prince title in 2004.
Hamza, who was placed under house arrest in April and has since been seen in public only once, denied provocation against Raja, saying he was being punished for calling out high-level corruption.
Despite the serious nature of the allegations against Avdallah and bin Zayed, the trial ended after only six seasons. The court denied a request by Jordan’s defense attorneys to call witnesses and prosecutors, sharing only purported tapes, but not audio, from surveillance of the alleged conspirators.
The prosecutor’s office in state security court denied the trial was unfair. Awdallah was “guaranteed due process” in accordance with Jordanian law, the prosecutor said in a statement to the AP. “He has not been abused in any way, and his allegations of torture of any kind are false.” Sullivan, a former US attorney for Massachusetts and former executive director of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said a guilty verdict appears to be a foregone conclusion, based on the way the trial was conducted. He said any sentence would be appealed.
Sullivan said the US legal team, which has so far been in the background, will play a more open role in the appeals phase. He said the aim is to raise awareness of Awdallah’s case in the United States and internationally. This includes “serious concerns about its safety and security in the short term and outright unfairness in the context of the process, as well as the apparent tort and violation of a number of international conventions, treaties and laws,” Sullivan said.
The prosecutor’s office said Avdallah did not make charges of torture during the court hearing, did not hold his 17 meetings with his Jordanian lawyer or the first four of his five meetings with the US consulate in Jordan. “He made these claims only at his most recent meeting with the consul, as the announcement of the ruling was imminent,” the statement said.
Sullivan said Avdallah told his visitor that he had been beaten, subjected to electric shock and threatened with future abuse “if he did not confess.” The prosecutor’s office said Avdallah made a voluntary statement about the case, denying that it was taken out by force.
Awdhallah’s family said late last week that they feared for their lives. “The fear of Bassem being killed in prison after sentencing is justified, especially because he held several high-ranking and sensitive positions in the Jordanian government,” the family said.
Awdallah, who also holds Jordanian and Saudi citizenship, served as the head of the royal court in Jordan and a minister to the government. He has broad business interests in the Gulf and has advised Saudi Arabia’s powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to attract foreign investment.
The Avdallah family urged the Biden administration to call for Avdallah’s release.
The White House asked questions on Sunday to the State Department, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (AP) MRJ
(This story is published as part of an auto-generated Syndicate wire feed. Headline or body have not been edited by ABP Live.)
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