Nurses Held in Libya 'Were Tortured'
In 2004 five Bulgarian nurses were found guilty by a Libyan court of deliberately infecting hundreds of children at a Benghazi hospital with HIV.

The nurses, who have always maintained their innocence, say they had been tortured into confessing.

They spent years on death row before finally being freed and sent home in 2007. 

Sonia Gallego spoke with them.

Seif Al-Islam, Ghadafi’s Son, Confirms that Nurses and Doctor Were Tortured
SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son confirms allegations made by a Palestinian-Bulgarian doctor and five Bulgarian nurses that they were tortured while being held captive in Libya for nine years.

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son has confirmed allegations made by a Palestinian-Bulgarian doctor and five Bulgarian nurses that they were tortured while being held captive in Libya for nine years.
Since their European Union-brokered release last month (more...), the six have given interviews with the European press, including SPIEGEL, citing specific torture techniques and methods used on them while being held on charges of infecting Libyan children with HIV.

In an interview with Al-Jazeera released in excerpts on Wednesday, Seif Al-Islam Gadhafi, considered by some analysts to be a reformer, confirmed most of the allegations.

"Yes, they were tortured by electricity and they were threatened that their family members would be targeted," he said. Gadhafi did not apologize for their treatment, and even said allegations made by Palestinian-Bulgarian doctor Sharaf al-Hazouz, who was arrested with the five nurses and later awarded Bulgarian citizenship, were false. Gadhafi's Son Confirms Abuse of Bulgarian Medics: 'YES, THEY WERE TORTURED' (more)

Mark Alexander

To Hell and Back. Is this the Love of Islam?
Why do we cut Islam so much slack?
SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Five nurses and a doctor freed last week after eight years in Libyan captivity were held in a remote area where no one could hear their screams as they were tortured, The Sunday Telegraph can reveal.

In his first newspaper interview since his release, the doctor, Ashraf al-Hazouz, described the "hell" of being held in solitary confinement in a tiny cell barely long enough for him to lie down. He said his captors sexually assaulted the nurses and injected them all with what they were told was the HIV virus.

The six Bulgarian nationals, who were sentenced to death after they were convicted of spreading the HIV virus among patients in a children's hospital in Libya, were released last week and are preparing to sue the Libyan government over their treatment.

Speaking from the Bulgarian presidential residence in Sofia, where he and the nurses are currently staying, Dr al-Hazouz said: "The past eight years have been one big nightmare. We were tortured during the police investigation for over 10 months. We were held in a remote place outside of Tripoli, in a desolate area where no one could hear you scream. It was hell we went through. Libya HIV doctor tells of eight-year hell (more) By Bojan Pancevski in Vienna

Mark Alexander

Breaking News: Libyan Families Drop Demands for the Execution of Five Bulgarian Nurses and One Palestinian Doctor
BBC: Families of Libyan children infected with HIV have dropped their demand for six foreign medical workers convicted in the case to be sentenced to death. Libya families end execution bid (more)

Mark Alexander

Torture and Insanity in Libya
BBC: Hopes are rising that the six foreign medical staff condemned to death in Libya for infecting children with HIV may be freed as part of a financial settlement with the families of the children.

The medics, who all proclaim their innocence, were arrested eight years ago after an outbreak of HIV at a paediatric hospital in Benghazi.

A Libyan court has cleared nine policemen and a doctor of torturing the foreign workers into signing confessions.

All six are Bulgarian citizens with one, an Egyptian-born Palestinian, given citizenship in June 2007.

Sofia-based journalist Virginia Savova looks at each of their cases for the BBC News website. Profiles: The imprisoned medics (more)

WATCH BBC VIDEO:
Libya HIV medics appeal

Mark Alexander