February 9 is the date marking the seventh year of the imprisonment of the five Bulgarian nurses in Libya. The French Le Monde published an article, named Punishment Without Crime in Libya for the occasion.

The article appears in the newspaper's Point of View section. The signatures of Antoan Aleksiev, one of the lawyers of the Bulgarians, and of representatives of various non-governmental organisations appear under the article.

Seven years after the arrest, the five innocent Bulgarians and the Palestinian doctor detained for the same charges appeal for aid to the international community, the publication reported.

The case has become political, which prevents proper legal proceedings, the authors wrote. Confessions have been produced through torture and a death sentence would be an absurd decision, according to the article.

Libyan authorities are using the Bulgarian nurses as a cover for improper practices and lack of hygiene in local hospitals, Le Monde stated. The authors appeal for international support and fast conclusion of the trial.