Rida Al-Ghasra’s Escapes: Fleeing from Hell Isn’t Impossible
2017-02-15 - 6:36 ص
Bahrain Mirror (Exclusive): The waves of the sea neighboring the isolated Jaw Central Prison continue to rise, splash on the prison walls and then return to calmness in a never ending cycle. Similar to the waves are the inhabitants of this prison compound. While the New Year's eve was being celebrated there, ten young men succeeded in escaping from the abyss and climb over the great Jaw prison wall.
It is the same prison where a phone camera recorded the leaked footage showing martyr Abbas Al-Samie announcing his innocence to the family of the slain Emirati officer Tariq Al-Shehi, before he passed away, very well aware of what such a declaration would cost him.
It is the same place, where Jihad leaked the papers of his "Jaw" novel, to be printed and then published. This novel takes the reader to those particular moments that prisoners experience and what happens inside these walls. When you finish reading the novel, you will feel immersed in the details and attached to it.
It is that jail where the strength and resilience of the defected sergeant Mohammed Ramadan were manifested. Neither the notorious "Criminal Investigations Department" nor the "Public prosecution" were able to extract his confessions, despite being exposed to torture as he later announced: "I was subjected to brutal torture that cannot be borne by beasts, so how could I endure it as a human being."
The cost of tweet is very pricey in Bahrain. If a tweet denouncing the war on Yemen costs 5 years of imprisonment, what would be the cost of protesting, confrontation or fleeing? The repeated breakouts of Rida Al-Ghasra costed him more than a century behind bars that were to be extended if he escaped one more time. Despite all of the risks, Al-Ghasra decided to flee along with his 9 companions. They challenged the state's brutality and overcame their sufferings: "What if we succeed?!," they thought.
The rebellious Al-Ghasra is "so dangerous". His third escape led to transferring the Director of Reform and Rehabilitation Department to the presidency of the General Security. As a result, one of the officers was assigned to follow up the tasks of the department that become under the power of the Ministry of Interior. After his fourth and final escape, a number of officials and members affiliated to the Reform and Rehabilitation Department were summoned for investigation, because there was suspicion of collusion and negligence on the guards' part and lack of supervision.
New companions used to join Al-Ghasra every time he planned an escape. The dream of freedom grew and the idea of escaping from the hell become very possible in the minds of prisoners. These acts led the authorities to panic. Thus, with Al-Ghasra's last breakout, the authorities ordered the security forces to find the fugitives and catch Rida, dead or alive.
The following table illustrates the four escapes of Rida Al-Ghasra:
Escapes of Rida Al-Ghasra (Born in 1988) |
|||||||
Date |
Place |
Fugitives |
Means of Escape |
Arrests |
Charges & Consequences |
||
First Escape |
Tuesday May 8, 2012 |
Dry Dock Prison |
Rida Al-Ghasra (24 years old) |
He wore a woman’s gown (Abaya) during a family visit and was able to escape. |
He was arrested one year later in Bani Jamra |
He was charged with rioting and disobedience of the law. His prison term was extended. |
|
Second Escape |
Sunday, August 4, 2013 |
Jaw Prison |
Rida Al-Ghasra (25 years old) with Hussein Al-Banaa |
Hussein Al-Banaa agreed with people he knew to provide them with a car that would give them a ride on the day when the prisoners’ match is held and while the policemen are busy. Al-Ghasra broke one of the locks to use it to close the prison’s gate, so the guards fail to chase them. They asked the g uard to go to the barber and when they arrived to the counter near the prison’s guard, Al-Ghasra pulled the policeman to the ground. Meanwhile, the Other prisoner climbed the fence and managed to escape. Al-Ghasra; however, was caught while attempting to climb the fence. |
He succeeded in smuggling his friend but he was caught while trying to climb the fence. |
He was sentenced to 10 years in prison over his failed escape attempt. He was charged with carrying weapons, attacking and attempting to murder policemen, and detonating a number of explosives. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison over the Bani Jamra case. The total number of sentences against him reached 45 years. |
|
Third Escape |
Monday, April 21, 2014 (Before 3AM) |
Jaw Prison |
Rida Al-Ghasra (26 years old) with Hussein Al-Banaa |
A foreigner was put in Al-Ghasra’s prison cell. He showed Rida the prison’s map and asked Rida to show him the way to escape. Rida pointed at the opening of the central air conditioning vent. The Foreigner did not believe him. Thus, Rida showed him how he entered the air conditioning vent and told the foreigner that this was the way he broke out from the prison. It is said that they fled by sea after escaping from the prison and the incident was discovered at 6 AM. |
He was arrested two days later at Wednesday dawn (April 23, 2014) while hiding in a house in Saar with a roup of “wanted suspects” |
An investigation committee was established to look into the security and legal measures. - The Director of Reform and Rehabilitation Department was transferred to the presidency of the General Security. One of the officers was assigned to follow the tasks of the department that become under the authority of the Ministry of Interior. -A number of malicious cases was fabricated against him. He was sentenced to more than 104 years in prison and his citizenship was revoked. |
|
Fourth Escape |
Sunday, January 1, 2017 (5:30 AM) |
Jaw Prison |
Rida Al-Ghasra (24 years old) with Hussein Al-Banaa and 8 others |
The Ministry of Interior claimed that a number of prisoners fled wearing “policemen uniform”. According to the MoI’s narrative, policeman Abdulsalam Seif Ahmad died While confronting to the attack. |
He was killed on Thursday (February 9, 2017) while attempting to flee the country by sea. He was shot 3 times in the head and was martyred immediately. |
-A number of officials and members affiliated to the Reform and Rehabilitation Directorate were summoned for interrogation over suspicion of collusion and negligence on the guards’ part and lack of supervision. -Two others were martyred, two twin brothers were injured as well as 5 other fugitives. |
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