It is a case of corruption which plagues the Mauritanian police as much as it reveals the weaknesses of a key partner of the European Union (EU) in the fight against irregular immigration. On October 9, at least eleven police officers and two smugglers, accused of accepting bribes from sub-Saharan African migrants in exchange for their release, were arrested and detained in Nouakchott.
Two days before the arrest of these agents, Commissioner Mohamed Abdel Fattah Ould Sid Ahmed, head of the office to combat migration and human trafficking, was fired. According to an official document signed by the director of national security obtained by The Worldthis sanction is linked to the conclusions of an investigation and the recommendations of a disciplinary committee, citing “ misconduct and neglect of duty “.
Although the Mauritanian government claims that he was not fired for this affair of suspicion of bribes but for administrative reasons, consistent sources assure that Mr. Fattah had at least minimal knowledge of this network. The World notably obtained a secretly recorded conversation this summer in which a police officer under Mr. Fattah's orders indicated that his superior and some of his colleagues accepted money from detained migrants and smugglers organizing illegal trips to Spain.
Let's abandon in the desert
Since 2021, the EU has been working with Mauritania within the framework of the Joint Operational Partnership (POC). With a budget of 4.55 million euros, this project, implemented by the Spanish development agency (FIIAPP) and the office to combat migration and human trafficking, provides training, equipment or even the construction of detention centers in Mauritania.
According to a Mauritanian source close to the matter, the Nouakchott government would try to protect Mr. Fattah in order to preserve this cooperation and EU funding. In 2022, this commissioner, from an influential family linked to former president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, received a medal of merit from the Spanish government for his contribution to the fight against irregular immigration.
In May, The Worldin collaboration with Lighthouse Reports and other media outlets, revealed that Mauritania was using EU funds to arbitrarily detain and abandon thousands of sub-Saharan migrants in the desert on the border with Mali, often without food or water.
According to several witnesses, these abandonments in the desert were carried out under the supervision of Mr. Fattah and with the assistance of the Spanish police. The World had also obtained photos showing him with Spanish agents working on the POC project in Nouakchott or on work trips to the Canary Islands.
Contacted by The Worldthe Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was informed of the dismissal of Mr. Fattah but without further details. A spokesperson for the European Commission also said it was aware of the dismissal of the Mauritanian commissioner, adding that it did not comment on ongoing investigations. In March, the EU launched a €210 million migration partnership with Mauritania. Commissioner Ylva Johansson then estimated that this partnership would strengthen joint efforts to combat migrant smuggling.
Source: Lemonde