AFTE’s Weekly Legal Bulletin (20:27 October 2024)| Renewal of detention for 12 citizens, including one who has been held in pretrial detention for 5 year

Date : Sunday, 27 October, 2024
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20 October Sessions 

Supreme State Security Prosecution

The Supreme State Security Prosecution has renewed the detention of Asmaa Mohamed Zakariya for 15 days pending investigations in Case No. 2810 of 2024, Supreme State Security Prosecution.

On June 29, 2024, Asmaa turned herself in at the police station near to her home after a police force visited her home in her absence. She was stopped there unlawfully until she was brought before the Supreme State Security Prosecution on July 3, 2024.

The prosecution has charged her with joining a terrorist group with knowledge of its aims, spreading false news and statements that could harm public security, and using a social media account to spread and broadcast false information.

The prosecution challenged her with several posts about the electricity outage crisis on her Facebook account, and she was also confronted with her mobile phone, which she admitted owning. It is worth noting that Asmaa is a mother of two young children, for whom she is responsible.

 

21 October Sessions 

Supreme State Security Prosecution

The Supreme State Security Prosecution renewed journalist Khaled Mamdouh Mohamed Ibrahim’s detention for 15 days, pending investigation in case number 1282 of the 2024 Supreme State Security Prosecution.

During the session, Mamdouh complained about the dire living conditions and water shortages at Abu Zaabal Prison, as well as mistreatment by the prison administration, after the prosecution allowed Mamdouh to speak with them during the session.

He also requested to know the reasons for his detention and the accusations against him, without being confronted with any actual crime.

On 21 July, Mamdouh was presented to the prosecution without any evidence or attachments, 6 days after raiding his home and enforcing his disappearance. 

He was accused of joining a terrorist group with knowledge of its objectives, financing a terrorist group, and publishing and broadcasting fake news and statements that would harm security and public order.

The prosecution seized his phone and laptop.

On July 17, AFTE filed a complaint with the Attorney General, numbered 846067 for the year 2024, detailing the events of security forces raiding the home of journalist Khaled Mamdouh and taking him to an unknown place on July 16. 

In the complaint, AFTE stated that a security force searched Mamdouh’s home randomly, and refused to disclose their identities, their affiliation, or the reason for his arrest. 

His family has been unable to determine his place of detention or communicate with him before presenting him to the prosecution.

It is worth mentioning that Mamdouh’s arrest report was dated 20 July, not the date of his actual arrest on 16 July.

 

22 October Sessions 

Criminal Court

Cairo Criminal Court (First Terrorism Circuit) renewed the detention of 8 persons for 45 days, who are: 

1- Muhammad Mahmoud Sabry Ismail, pending investigations in Case No. 95 of the 2023 Supreme State Security Prosecution.

Ismail was arrested at the airport while returning to Egypt to visit his family from the UAE, where he works.

Ismail was presented to the Supreme State Security Prosecution on May 27, 2024. 

He was charged with joining a terrorist group while knowing its purposes, publishing and broadcasting false news and statements that would harm security and public order, and using an account on social media for publishing and broadcasting false news and statements.

 

2- Journalist Karim Ebrahim, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 569 of 2020 (Supreme State Security Prosecution).

AFTE submitted a request to the Attorney General, numbered 60034 for the year 2024, the Technical Office, demanding the immediate release of journalist Karim Ebrahim following the expiration of his pretrial detention that was provided for in Article 143 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Security forces arrested the journalist at Al-Bawaba newspaper and a member of the Journalists Syndicate in April 2020; he was arrested in connection with clashes between the police forces and armed members, which took place in the Alamiria district, his residence place. 

He was also unlawfully detained for a month before being brought before the investigation authorities, which accused him of joining a terrorist group.

 

3- Mohamed Ahmed Saad, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 930 of 2019 (Supreme State Security), known in the media as “the Alliance of Hope lawsuit.” which included a large number of political activists, Although he didn’t participate in any political activity.

Last May, Saad resumed his sixth year in pretrial detention, exceeding the legal period stipulated in the law. 

He was arrested from inside the examination hall at the Faculty of Commerce at Al-Azhar University on May 17, 2019, and appeared before the Prosecution on July 1. 

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.

4- Moataz Bellah Hassab Elnaby, pending the investigation of lawsuit No. 965 of 2021 (Supreme State Security), completing three years in pretrial detention. 

Security forces arrested Hasab Elnaby on July 12, 2021, against the grounds of several posts published on a Facebook account attributed to him; despite the fact that Hasab Elnaby denied his ownership of the account

 

5- Karim Hamdi Salem, pending Case No. 570 of 2020, Supreme State Security Prosecution.

 

Salem faces charges of joining a terrorist group and financing that group. Salem works as a photojournalist for DMC Channel.

 

 6- Translator and political activist, Marwa Arafa, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 570 of 2020 (Supreme State Security).

Arafa has been detained in connection with this lawsuit since April 2020, despite the lack of legal justifications for her continued imprisonment as the Criminal Procedure Code stipulates that the period of pretrial detention must not exceed two years, after which release is mandatory.

This incident caused psychological disorders to her daughter Wafa, who was two years old at the time, as a result of the trauma she experienced when she witnessed her mother’s arrest, which resulted in delayed language problems with communication.

Arafa faces accusations of joining and financing a terrorist group; based on an accusation that she was financially supporting prisoners, Arafa denied the accusation and stated that she was only trying to help those in need, including the families of prisoners who may have lost their sole breadwinner. Even then, she had not provided any financial support, only supplies such as food and clothing.

 

7- Amir Sayed Mohamed and Reyad Mohamed Abdel Rahaman for 45 days, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 744 of 2023 (Supreme State Security).

Although Amir and Reyad are Zamalek football club fans, the prosecution accused them of joining a terrorist group, Ultras Ahlawy, and spreading false news and information that would harm public security and order.

Security forces arrested Amir and Reyad on May 3 from the DownTown district in Cairo, and security forces detained them without legal basis and in an unknown location for eight days before presenting them before the prosecution.

 

23 October Sessions

Criminal Court

The Cairo Criminal Court (First Circuit Terrorism) decided to renew the detention of 3 people for 45 days, who are: 

1- Muhammad Fathallah Rushdi Zayan  pending investigations in Case No. 2727 of 2023, Supreme State Security.

Zayan was arrested on October 15, 2023, from his home in Beni Suef Governorate based on an arrest warrant in another case No. 2255 of 2023, Supreme State Security, the case of electoral process papers of potential candidate Ahmed Al-Tantawi. The prosecution investigated him on the same day, and he was detained pending investigations.

On October 25, 2023, the prosecution excluded him from referral to trial in the electoral process papers case and copied his papers to the case in which he is now being held in pretrial detention.

Zayan was confronted with a video clip that he posted on his Facebook account from the conference of the potential candidate at the time, Ahmed Al-Tantawi, during his visit to Beni Suef Governorate. A TV channel took that video and broadcast it on its screen.

He was charged with participating with a terrorist group in achieving its goals, publishing and broadcasting fake news and statements that would harm security and public order, and using an account on the internet for the purpose of publishing and broadcasting fake news and statements.

 

2- Omar Mohamed Mohamed ElDahma, pending investigations in Case No. 2469 of 2023 (Supreme State Security), following his participation in demonstrations of solidarity with Palestine on Friday, 13 October 2023,  in Alexandria.

Security forces stopped ElDahma, a graphic designer, in front of his house in Alexandria’s Miami neighborhood. 

The prosecution charged him with joining a terrorist group, spreading false news, and participating in a gathering that would put public peace in danger.

3- Lawyer Saied Hassan Ali, pending investigations of lawsuit No. 238 of 2021 (Supreme State Security), which exceeds 3 years in prison.

After his release from another, the Supreme State Security Prosecution investigated Ali in this lawsuit. The lawyer and human rights defender faces accusations of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.

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