News briefing
By: Committee for Justice
Geneva: June 27, 2023
CFJ documents new death inside a detention center in Egypt, the 17th in 2023, for the lawyer and human rights defender, Ali Abbas Barakat, who fell into a complete hepatic coma as a result of as a result of medical negligence and poor conditions of detention.
Coma for two days without any intervention:
According to sources from the family, Barakat fell into a complete hepatic coma due to his infection with the Hepatitis C virus while being held at Qanater Prison. The prison administration deliberately neglected his deteriorating health, as he was not transferred to the Badr Prison Hospital Complex until two days after falling into a coma, which resulted in his death on Monday, June 26, 2023. Earlier, the Committee for Justice had condemned the violations against the Egyptian lawyer and human rights advocate Barakat due to the deliberate medical negligence by the prison administration.
Detention cases recycling:
Human rights lawyer, Ali Abbas Barakat, has been detained since his arrest in December 2016 in Menoufia. He was convicted in multiple cases. However, he appealed all the verdicts, and his appeals were accepted, resulting in his acquittal. The latest verdict in his favor was issued in May 2022.
After Barakat’s recent acquittal, he was transferred from Wadi al-Natrun Annex Prison on June 17, 2022, to Bandar Shebin al-Koum police station, and then to Menouf police station in preparation for his release. However, his family was shocked by his return to Shebin al-Koum police station, where he was forcibly disappeared. He remained missing from the time of his return to the station on June 22, 2022, until he reappeared at the Supreme State Security Prosecution in Cairo on July 7, 2022, in relation to Case No. 670 of 2022, where he was accused of joining a terrorist group.
Appeals to end the targeting of human rights defenders:
The Committee for Justice condemns the Egyptian authorities’ apathy towards the lives of political detainees and demands a thorough, transparent, and expeditious investigation into the death of Barakat. CFJ urges for the responsible parties to be held accountable to prevent impunity.
Furthermore, the organization calls on the Egyptian authorities to cease their policy of targeting human rights defenders. Barakat’s case exemplifies this practice, as he was involved in multiple cases and subjected to “case recycling” following his recent acquittal. These actions were a direct result of his human rights advocacy for prisoners of conscience. The situation culminated in the neglect of his deteriorating health, leading to a two-day coma without urgent medical intervention. CFJ urges a halt to these practices and emphasizes the need for the protection of human rights defenders.
17 deaths in 2023:
CFJ has been monitoring the alarming increase in death cases in custody in Egypt since the beginning of 2023, with a total of 17 reported deaths. The most recent case was Saleh Abd al-Sattar Saad Rahim (41 years old), a resident of the Al-Firdous village of the Adwa district in Minya governorate, and a father of four children, the eldest of whom is 13 years old. He died as a result of torture inside the Adwa Police Station in Minya Governorate, southern Egypt.
Accurate information about death cases during detention in Egypt can be obtained through the Justice Watch Archive service provided by CFJ, which contains information about more than 14,000 victims and over 30,000 violations. It also monitors violations inside more than 500 places of detention in Egypt.
