Issam Alim

Issam Abdel-Tawab Abdel Alim (عصام عبدالتواب عبدالعليم) was a member of al-Jihad convicted in Egypt's Returnees from Albania case. He was the only member extradited from Bulgaria, following his capture by the CIA in Sofia in July 1998.^[1][2] He was one of 14 people subjected to extraordinary rendition by the CIA prior to the 2001 declaration of a War on Terror.^[3]

During his interrogations, he alleged he was frequently tortured; his genitals were repeatedly electrocuted and his right arm incapacitated after being the subject of a "sharpening tool".^[4]

At trial, he described how the group began training its recruits in Yemen in 1990, where they were schooled in Sharia, political history of militant Islamic movements, surveillance techniques and document forgery.^[5] He also noted that he had met Muhammad al-Zawahiri in the country.^[6]

Held incommunicado from his arrest on July 13 until September 12, he was sentenced to either 10 or 15 years' imprisonment.^[7]

References

1. Canadian Security Intelligence Service, "Summary of the Security Intelligence Report concerning Mohamed Zeki Mahjoub", February 22, 2008.
2. Cageprisoners.com, Ghost: Ahmad Ismail Uthman Archived 2010-01-15 at the Wayback Machine
3. Mother Jones, Disappearing Act: Rendition by the Numbers, March 3, 2008
4. Hafez Abu-Saada, "Compiled complaints of Ahmed Osman Saleh, Ahmed Ibrahim al-Naggar, Shawki Salama Attiya, Essam Abdel Tawwab, and Mohamed Hassan Tita", legal document produced by lawyer, 1998
5. Sachs, Susan. New York Times, "An Investigation in Egypt illustrates Al-Qaeda's Web", November 21, 2001
6. Asharq al-Awsat, شقيق أيمن الظواهري يؤكد أنه على قيد الحياة في أحد السجون المصرية ومقربون منه يتوقعون إعادة محاكمته Archived 2011-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, February 28, 2004
7. United Nations, The Fate of Islamists Rendered to Egypt