Press release
Geneva – June 27, 2024
The Committee for Justice (CFJ) has condemned a death sentence issued by the Terrorism Criminal Court, held at the Wadi El Natrun Rehabilitation Center, and has called for the abolition of the death penalty and a retrial before a regular judge.
The court, presided over by Judge Sameh Abdel Hakam, alongside Judges Abdel Rahman Safwat Al-Husseini, Yasser Akasha Al-Mutannawi, and Mohamed Marai, with the presence of Zeid Nafeh, head of the Supreme State Security Prosecution, sentenced Abdullah El-Zareidi to death by hanging. El-Zareidi was convicted of murdering a police officer in Shibin Al-Qanater and attempting to kill others. The court’s decision was supported by a report from the Grand Mufti, endorsing the application of retribution due to the severity of the crime.
A forensic psychiatric report presented in a previous session concluded that El-Zareidi had been examined by a tripartite committee at Abbasiya Psychiatric Hospital, which found no evidence of mental or psychological disorders at the time of the crime or during the examination. The report confirmed that El-Zareidi was fully aware and capable of making decisions, thereby holding him accountable for the charges against him.
CFJ has rejected the death sentence, criticizing it as a product of an exceptional court operating under the extraordinary “Anti-Terrorism Law,” which lacks the fundamental standards of a fair trial recognized internationally. CFJ has urged the suspension of the sentence and called for El-Zareidi to be retried before a regular judge.
Additionally, CFJ has appealed to Egypt to heed international calls to abolish the death penalty and replace it with lesser penalties. CFJ has also called on the international community and UN mechanisms to monitor the situation in Egypt, pressuring the authorities to halt political executions and the ongoing loss of life, and to provide remedies for the families of those executed following such trials.
