Abdul Kader al-Nafi

Abdul Kader al-Nafi, now a married family man, was a high school student when arrested in June 2016. Four masked ISIS members in a yellow taxi raided his house one night, arresting him on the charge of using the internet at home. (ISIS had banned the use of the internet in private spaces.) This led to another charge being brought against Abdul Kader: collaboration with the Global Coalition.

In front of the prison gate, Abdul Kader recalls being brought inside the prison and then taken downstairs to the storage room, where he handed over his belongings and changed into the prison uniform. He then had his information registered on a computer, was given a prison card with the number 1005 printed on it to hang around his neck, and was moved to the corridor.

In the corridor, he stands in front of the camera on the same spot where he once stood for two days, waiting to be interrogated. He explains how the guards used to force prisoners to stand in the corridor for days, until they lost the ability to stand any longer. Abdul Kader then crosses the long corridor from his cell to the interrogation room, recalling the sounds of torture that he heard and the sounds of the prisoners talking in the group cells and the neighboring rooms.

In the investigation room, Abdul Kader lists the methods of torture ISIS used, including flogging, suspension from the ceiling by the wrists, and electric shocks. He then details how he was interrogated on the charge of collaborating with the Global Coalition. He mentions that the interrogators would try to entice him to work for them, although this did not prevent them making continuous threats of punishment and death. 

Abdul Kader says that he was always blindfolded, so couldn’t see what was in the investigation room. The guards only removed his blindfold once, so that he could phone his family. (Family visits were prohibited.) He recalls too that ISIS took pictures of the prisoners upon arrival. However, the interrogation was not recorded. 

He cannot recall the names of the interrogators, but does remember that the governor of the prison was called Abu Luqman. He also recognizes two jailers: Abu Ahmad, who treated them well; and al-Zarqawi, whose treatment of the prisoners was poor. Abdul Kader insists that, judging by their dialects, all the jailers were local to the area except for the judge, who was Tunisian. 

Then Abdul Kader makes his way over debris to the solitary cell where he was imprisoned alongside two other inmates. He says that being alone was the hardest thing for him. Yet ISIS members unknowingly brought over another inmate known by Abdul, which turned out to be a very nice and unexpected surprise: his school friend! Spending their time in the solitary cell together gave the two friends some relief. 

Regarding food, Abdul Kader says that two meals were provided daily – breakfast and dinner. He says that chicken was served on Mondays and Thursdays, and that inmates were able to order food from outside the prison.

In front of the solitary cell, Abdul Kader narrates what happened when Global Coalition forces bombed the prison. He was almost completely buried under rubble, only his head remaining free. This allowed him to call a jailer for help. Once he had been dug out, he managed to uncover two other inmates. Taking advantage of the confusion, they attempted to escape, but ISIS soon recaptured them. They were covered in dust, and were still wearing the prison uniforms. Because the stadium basement had been severely damaged by the bombing, the men were transferred to the Maraya Prison, and then to a prison in Madan.

Abdul Kader thinks there may have been a section for female prisoners, as he heard the voice of a woman being tortured. He also mentions that a prisoner from Azerbaijan was badly tortured. This foreign fighter was charged with collaborating with the Global Coalition.

He says that favoritism and influential connections were important in the prison. Those with the right contacts were released quickly. But Abdul Kader was released only after he had spent 34 days in the Stadium Prison and another 40 days attending a repentance course at the prison in Madan. He says that his release was like a rebirth, as those who entered the stadium usually came out dead.