CAT/C/50/D/430/2010 claims to be exposed. After the approval of a request by a higher regional court, the Government of the State party must still decide whether to authorize the extradition. The Ministry of Justice considers whether the requirements for extradition — including the State party’s obligations under international law — have been met. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs must also approve the extradition. At all stages of the proceedings, reports from both governmental and non-governmental sources are consulted in order to arrive at a realistic assessment of the situation in the requesting State. If necessary, conditions may be attached to the approval of the extradition. 6.3 The State party indicates that it is familiar with the reports cited by the complainant in her complaint, which give rise to serious concerns about the human rights situation in Tunisia. The decision to extradite Onsi Abichou was taken following a scrupulous, detailed evaluation of the specific risks to which he would be exposed. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested diplomatic assurances from the Tunisian authorities that, inter alia, Onsi Abichou would be entitled to a retrial in which the rights set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights would be upheld and that, in the event of a new conviction, he would be incarcerated in a detention facility that complies with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. The Tunisian Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided such assurances to the State party on 8 May 2010.15 In arriving at its decision, the Saarbrücken Regional High Court, which had jurisdiction to approve the extradition request, took into consideration reports relating to the human rights situation in Tunisia from the State party’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amnesty International and the United States Department of State. On the basis of these reports, the Court found that it could not rule out the possibility that suspects in Tunisia were subjected to illegal treatment, but that there was no indication that the Tunisian authorities had instigated or acquiesced to such treatment, at least not in connection with crimes that did not have to do with terrorism. 6.4 As to the claims that individuals who provided testimony leading to Onsi Abichou’s conviction had been tortured, the Saarbrücken Regional High Court considered that those allegations had not been substantiated. In addition, Mr. Abichou’s conviction had been based on other corroborating evidence. Furthermore, since Mr. Abichou’s right, under Tunisian law, to request a trial de novo had been explicitly confirmed by the Tunisian authorities in the assurances that they provided to the State party, the Court considered that there was no reason to think that Onsi Abichou would not receive a fair trial. The State party adds that the Saarbrücken Regional High Court also took note of the concerns relating to conditions of detention in Tunisia that were described in the above-mentioned reports, but considered that the assurances provided by Tunisia, to the effect that Onsi Abichou would be incarcerated in a detention facility that complies with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, ruled out such risks. The competent courts and authorities of the State party thus carefully considered the risks entailed by the extradition of Onsi Abichou to Tunisia. In addition, the German Embassy in Tunis followed up on these diplomatic assurances, and officials from the French Embassy in Tunis (given 15 GE.13-45615 The assurances which were provided were as follows: (i) If the judicial decisions constituting the basis for the request for Mr. Abichou’s extradition are challenged, the ensuing proceedings will provide for the consideration of all the relevant facts of the case; (ii) The proceedings to be undertaken will be such as to ensure that the defendant is able to question the witnesses against him and his co-defendants; (iii) The proceedings to be undertaken will be conducted in accordance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which has been ratified by Tunisia; (iv) If Mr. Abichou is convicted, he will serve his sentence in a prison that complies with the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners; (v) In accordance with the rule of speciality, Mr. Abichou will not be tried on any charges other than those indicated in the extradition request of 24 October 2009; and (vi) Mr. Abichou will be eligible for parole under articles 353 ff. of the Code of Criminal Procedure. 9