Criminal Court
On August 12, the Criminal Court (Second Circuit) renewed the detention of lawyer Saied Hassan Ali for 45 days pending investigations of lawsuit No. 238 of 2021 (Supreme State Security).
Saad appeared before the prosecution in connection with the current lawsuit after being released from another one against the same accusations of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.
August 13 hearings:
the Criminal Court (Second Circuit) renewed the detention of four students who created and spread a sarcastic event on social media titled “Batman Helwan” for 45 days pending investigations of lawsuit No. 440 of 2022.
The four students, aged between 17 and 19 years old, physical therapy student Anas Mahmoud Zahran, cooperation institute student Karim Mohamed Refaat, and high school students Mazen Reda and Eslam Nagdy.
Security forces arrested the four of them on July 4, 2022, and they face accusations of joining a terrorist group, spreading false news, and inciting a terrorist act.
the Criminal Court (Second Circuit) also renewed Amr Abdel-Moneim’s detention for 45 days, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 930 of 2019 (Supreme State Security).
Abdel-Moneim exceeded four years in pretrial detention last month against accusations of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.
In a similar context, the Criminal Court (Second Circuit) renewed the detention of student Mohamed Ahmed Saad for 45 days, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 930 of 2019 (Supreme State Security).
Security forces arrested Saad from inside the Faculty of Commerce, Al-Azhar University exam room on May 17, 2019. He exceeded his fourth year in pretrial detention. Saad faces accusations of joining a terrorist group, financing this group, spreading false news and information, and using a social media account to spread false news.
Also, the Criminal Court (Second Circuit) renewed the detention of translator and political activist Marwa Arafa, for 45 days, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 570 of 2020 (Supreme State Security).
the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression, in its statement, called for Arafa’s release on the anniversary of her fourth birthday in Qanater prison, away from her child daughter.
Arafa was arrested on April 2020 against accusations of joining a terrorist group with knowledge of its purposes and committing a financial crime for a terrorist purpose.
The Criminal Court (Second Circuit) renewed Mohamed Mamdouh Abdel Halim’s detention for 45 days, pending his second lawsuit, No. 855 of 2020 (Supreme State Security Prosecution).
Abdel Halim spent a year in pretrial detention in connection with another lawsuit; he was listed in the current lawsuit after his release against the exact accusations of joining a terrorist group, spreading false news, and misusing social media.
Supreme State Security Prosecution
On August 14, the Supreme State Security Prosecution renewed the detention of two Zamalek football club fans, Amir Sayed Mohamed and Reyad Mohamed Abdel Rahaman, for 15 days, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 744 of 2023 (Supreme State Security).
Amir and Reyad were both arrested on May 3; they appeared before the prosecution 8 days later. The prosecution accused them of joining a terrorist group (Ultras Ahlawy) and spreading false news and information that would harm public security and public order.
University’s disciplinary councils
The Disciplinary Council of the Teaching Staff at the Higher Technological Institute in the 10th of Ramadan City set next August 21 as a date to adjudicate the disciplinary lawsuit against Manar Al-Tantawy, the teaching staff member at the institute, the same lawsuit in which Al-Tantawy was referred to after she approved the laboratory secretary’s leave request who works under her supervision, therefore; the head of the mechanical engineering department at the institute filed a complaint accusing her of impersonating him and approving leave requests for the department employees unjustly.
It should be noted that Al-Tantawy held the mechanical engineering department head position and temporarily apologized for the title after she went through health problems. The institute’s administration still refuses to return to her official position.
In the previous hearing, Al-Tantawy’s defense panel requested the institute’s administration to provide a copy of the teaching staff member of the institute, Dr. Haitham Alzumor’s approval of the institute’s laboratory workers’ leave as proof of the violations against Al-Tantawy, as the institute’s administration didn’t take any measures against Alzumor, as what happened with Al-Tantawy. The institute’s administration presented what the defense requested, and the two approvals matched, which proves that the complaint against Al-Tantawy was malicious.
State Council Courts
On August 17, The Administrative Judiciary Court (13th Circuit) dismissed appeal No. 8144 of 55 filed by Cairo University against the court’s decision to appoint Hagar Ismael Hanafy as the University’s faculty of science.
The Faculty of Science at Cairo University refused to appoint Hagar as a lecture at the faculty despite being one of the top students and fulfilling all the requirements that qualify her for the position; the University attributed its refusal to the lack of security approval; in the last year, AFTE filed an appeal before the Administrative Judiciary Court, challenging the university’s decision, and last January, the court annulled Cairo University’s decision. It ruled the illegality of requiring to obtain security approval to occupy any public positions and that universities have no right to refrain from appointing someone based on the security authorities’ opinions.
Cairo University refused to implement the Court’s ruling and decided to appeal it before the Administrative Judiciary Court, however; the judiciary did justice to Hagar for the second time.
