Nasiriyah Central Prison

Nasiriyah Central Prison (Arabic: سجن الناصرية المركزي‎), also known as al-Hoot prison (سجن الحوت), is a maximum security prison near Nasiriyah in the Dhi Qar Governorate of Iraq. It is the largest prison in southern Iraq.

Nasiriyah Central Prison

Coordinates	30°59′48.2″N 46°10′10.5″E
Security class	Maximum security prison
Capacity	800
Population	6000 (as of 2017)
Opened	2008
Managed by	Ministry of Justice (Iraq)
City	Nasiriyah
Country	Iraq

History

The prison was built at a cost of roughly $49,000,000 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. It opened in July 2008.[1]

Prison conditions

According to Alkarama, a Swiss human rights organisation, "conditions of detention in Al Nasiriyah prison remain very poor and prisoners are systematically tortured on a daily basis". Iraqi officials have stated that around 1,200 of the estimated 6,000 prisoners held in Nasiriyah have been sentenced to death. The prison is vastly overcrowded since it was only designed to hold 800 prisoners. The prisoners are mostly Sunni Muslims detained for political crimes or alleged involvement in terrorism.

In February 2018, a report by the Baghdad Centre for Human Rights ranked Nasiriyah prison as the worst in Iraq for mistreatment of prisoners.[2]

Notable prisoners

• Ayesh al-Harby, hijacker of Saudi Arabian Airlines Flight 115 on 14 October 2000.[3]
• Fahad al-Anzi, Mohammed al-Obeid, Majid al-Buqami, Faisal al-Faraj, Battal al-Harbi, Ali al-Shahri, Ali al-Qahtani, Hamad Yahya and Abdulrahman al-Qahtani, a group of Saudi Arabian prisoners.[4]
• Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai, served as Minister of Defense under Saddam Hussein's regime, died in custody on July 19, 2020 from heart attack.[5]

Executions

• On 21 August 2016, 36 prisoners accused of being members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant were hanged.[6]
• On 1 September 2016, seven prisoners from Libya, Tunisia, Sudan, Palestine, Syria, Jordan and Egypt were hanged, accused of being members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.[7]
• On 24 September 2017, 42 prisoners were hanged, allegedly members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad said it was unlikely due process had been met. According to the UN, "no information has been released about their names, places of residence, exact crimes, trials, date of sentencing, or the appeals processes".[8]
• On 14 December 2017, 38 prisoners alleged to be members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant were hanged.[9]

References

1. "Maximum-security prison constructed near Tallil". Retrieved 16 December 2017.
2. https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180201-report-39000-detainees-and-their-families-abused-in-iraq-prisons-in-2017/
3. "Iraq: Saudi refugee detained in Al Nasiriyah prison at high risk of torture - Alkarama Foundation". www.alkarama.org. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
4. amamouri (30 October 2016). "Execution of Saudi prisoners widens gap between Baghdad, Riyadh". Retrieved 16 December 2017.
5. "تلفزيون الناصرية: وفاة وزير الدفاع الاسبق سلطان هاشم في سجن الحوت". July 19, 2020.
6. "Iraq hangs dozens for Isil's 2014 Speicher massacre". 21 August 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2017 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
7. "Iraq executes 7 Arab men on terrorism convictions". Rudaw. 1 September 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
8. UN News Centre (27 September 2017). "Hanging of 42 prisoners in Iraq raises concern over flawed due process – UN rights chief". Retrieved 16 December 2017.
9. "Iraq hangs 38 on terrorism charges". 14 December 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2017.