MOSCOW. Oct 7 (Interfax) - The employees of the Russian Foundation for Protection of National Values who were detained in Libya in May have met with their lawyer, but the case materials were not provided to him, the foundation's head Alexander Malkevich said.
"Mohammad Ali Ayad, a lawyer for the Russians captured in Libya, has met with his clients, Maxim Shugaley and Samer Hassan Ali Sueifan, for the first time. The meeting took place on October 6 and lasted some two hours. Throughout that time, the prison administration was in the building and they did not leave the lawyer and his clients alone for a second. Thus, attorney-client privilege is out of the question," Malkevich wrote on Telegram.
The lawyer was not given the case materials, the authorities "citing high secrecy," he said.
According to earlier reports, Libyan prosecutors charged two employees of the Russian Foundation for Protection of National Values with meddling in elections.
According to the foundation, some 200 foreigners are currently imprisoned in Libya and they are all being deprived of the right to defense. Among the detainees are four Russians: two foundation officials and two sailors, who were detained in 2016.
The agency Bloomberg reported on July 5, citing documents it possessed, that Libyan security officials had arrested two Russian citizens.
Malkevich told Interfax then the foundation employees were in constant contact with the Libyan authorities following the detention of their employees.
"We have been in contact with the Libyan authorities and the Interior Ministry for a long time. And these talks are being conducted because all necessary measures are being taken," Malkevich said, responding to a question about the steps taken to free the foundation's employees.
The detainees are Maxim Shugaley, a sociologist and head of a field research group, and his interpreter Samer Hassan Ali Sueifan.