UAE’s Inhumane Prisons: A Living Hell for Political Detainees
A new report has shed light on the dire conditions inside UAE prisons, where prisoners of conscience endure severe mistreatment, including torture, solitary confinement, and medical neglect. Human rights organizations continue to denounce Abu Dhabi’s systematic violations, calling for urgent international intervention.
According to the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center (EDAC), prominent activists, human rights defenders, and political figures are subjected to arbitrary detention and brutal treatment. Among the most notable cases is that of Ahmed Mansoor, a renowned human rights activist sentenced to ten years in 2018 and 15 years in 2024 for expressing his views. He has reportedly suffered prolonged solitary confinement and medical neglect, leading to a deterioration in his health.
Similarly, Nasser bin Ghaith, an academic sentenced to ten years in 2015 and 15 years in 2024, has endured physical torture, sleep deprivation, and beatings, forcing him to go on hunger strikes in protest of his mistreatment.
Torture Methods in UAE Prisons
Human rights reports highlight a wide range of torture techniques used against detainees, drawing comparisons to some of the world’s most notorious detention centers. These methods include:
Temperature Manipulation: Prisoners are forced into extreme cold cells, left to shiver for hours without proper clothing, or exposed to desert heat by deliberately shutting off air conditioning.
Sleep Deprivation: Detainees are kept awake for days through constant noise, bright lights, and threats of violence. Libyan businessman Rifat Hadaga recounted being denied sleep for over three days, with guards removing his bedding.
Psychological and Physical Torture: Victims face long interrogation sessions, forced standing for hours, targeted beatings, and threats of execution. Some detainees have reported having their fingernails pulled out or being forced to drink from their own shoes as a form of humiliation.
Sexual Abuse and Electric Shocks: Reports detail cases of rape and sexual harassment, with detainees like British businessman David Haigh and Polish national Tor Ligiska alleging physical and sexual assaults by guards. Palestinian refugee Khaled Ahmed reported being subjected to electric shocks during interrogations.
Call for International Action
EDAC and other rights organizations have called for urgent international intervention to address these abuses, urging the UAE to comply with basic human rights standards. However, the international community has largely remained silent, allowing the UAE’s prison system to operate with impunity.
The report underscores the systematic nature of torture and repression in the country, emphasizing the need for immediate reforms and accountability for those responsible for these human rights violations.
