Algerian ex-minister persecuted in Switzerland dies
Published: Friday, Dec 29th 2023, 20:50
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The former Algerian defense minister Khaled Nezzar, who was prosecuted by the Swiss judiciary for crimes against humanity, died on Friday at the age of 86 in the Algerian capital Algiers. This was reported by state television.
In a message of condolence to the family on Friday, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune paid tribute to "one of the most outstanding military personalities" who had dedicated his life "in the service of the nation".
Accused in Switzerland
At the end of August, the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland filed an indictment against Nezzar with the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona. According to the indictment, between 1992 and 1994 he is alleged to have knowingly and deliberately approved, coordinated and promoted torture and "other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment", violations of physical and psychological integrity, arbitrary detentions and sentences as well as executions. His action plan had the goal of "eradicating the Islamist opposition".
"The independence of the judiciary does not justify irresponsibility, nor does any judicial system arrogate to itself the absolute right to judge the policies of a sovereign and independent state," responded the Algerian Foreign Ministry in a telephone conversation with Ignazio Cassis at the time. Algeria claimed that the case had reached "the limits of the inadmissible and intolerable".
Thousands dead in the civil war
During the civil war between 1992 and 1999, also known as the "décennie noire", up to 200,000 people are said to have been killed and around 1.5 million people displaced from their homes, according to various public sources. A further 20,000 people are said to have disappeared.
Nezzar was arrested in Geneva in October 2011 following a complaint by a Swiss NGO and was later released. He then left Switzerland.
In 2017, the Attorney General discontinued the proceedings on the grounds that Switzerland did not have jurisdiction to convict him. However, an appeal forced the judiciary to reopen the proceedings in 2018.
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