Plaintiffs take Khaled Nezzar case to European Court of Human Rights

The two plaintiffs in the Khaled Nezzar case denounce the slowness of the Swiss investigation, which they described as a "denial of justice". Keystone-SDA

Two plaintiffs in a serious war crimes case against former Algerian Defence Minister Khaled Nezzar have filed an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights. The Swiss Federal Criminal Court had closed the case after the death of Nezzar in 2023, accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes.

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The two plaintiffs filed their case with the Strasbourg court on July 8. They believe that Switzerland has violated their right to a fair trial, the Geneva-based NGO Trial International said on Tuesday. They denounce the slowness of the Swiss investigation, which they described as a “denial of justice”.

After appeals, the Federal Criminal Court ruled in March 2024 that the long periods of inactivity in this case and the succession of five prosecutors did not constitute violations of the obligations towards the plaintiffs.

The proceedings in the case, which date back to the 1990s, were opened in Switzerland in 2011 following a complaint by Trial International. As Algeria’s defence minister, Nezzar had authority over the army, which perpetrated abuses such as torture and extrajudicial executions.

An indictment was not filed until August 2023, four months before the former defence minister’s death. The Swiss proceedings were then dismissed without prejudice, even though a trial was scheduled for June 2024.

According to the plaintiffs’ lawyers, there was no real desire to prosecute the accused. “We denounce the organisational shortcomings and political interference in this case, which are documented in the file,” they said.

Trial International is calling for more resources to be allocated to the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland and for guarantees that trials take place within a reasonable timeframe for plaintiffs in cases linked to international crimes.

Translated from German by DeepL/sb

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