Othmane Abdellahoum was kidnapped by security officers in Ain Al Hadjel, Wilaya de Msila, after leaving his home at around 7pm on 16 October 2010. He is nowhere to be found.

On 5 November 2010 Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances asking for them to intervene with Algerian authorities so that Mr Abdellahoum can be released or placed under legal protection.

Mr Abdellahoum, 32, is a married father of two from Ain Al Hadjel in Wilaya de Msila.

The day after his arrest, his mother contacted the local police to find out where he was being held. The authorities denied having any knowledge his arrest.

His mother then filed a complaint with the Prosecutor General of Msila, who told her that the police would soon be contacting her. Since then, she has made daily visits to the Ain Al Hadjel police station, however the officers refuse to open an investigation.

Mr Abdellahoum was first abducted in February 2007 and secretly detained for two weeks before appearing in front of a court in Msila. During his detention, he was subject to severe torture, for which he was hospitalized at one point.

What was acquitted and released in November 2007.

Since his release, Mr Abdellahoum and his family have been continually persecuted. On several different occasions, military officers made visits to their family home.

In January 2008, a few weeks after his release, he and his brothers were interrogated by military officers.

Mr Abdellahoum's mother fears that her son's abduction is related to the persecutions his family has been going through since 2008. She also fears he will be tortured again.

Mr Abdellahoum's current secret detention is particularly alarming; he has been held in police custody longer than the legal time period and has still not been referred to a judge.