The Committee for Justice (CFJ) has documented the death of criminal prisoner Mohamed Abu Al‑Ela Abu Saree’ (36) inside Abu Zaabal Liman Prison (2), under mysterious circumstances that raise serious suspicions of torture and cruel treatment prior to his death.
According to CFJ, Abu Al‑Ela was serving a 15‑year prison sentence. He was found hanged inside his punishment cell on the morning of Tuesday, 20 January 2026. Prison authorities claimed in their official account that the death was a case of “suicide.” However, the circumstances leading up to the incident raise grave questions regarding the prison administration’s responsibility.
Available information indicates that the incident followed the prisoner’s objection to a decision preventing him from bringing in tools used to make handicrafts, a common practice inside prisons. As a result, he was placed in the punishment cell eight times over recent months, the most recent on 12 January 2026.
CFJ reported that the prisoner’s family had submitted an official complaint on 31 December 2025 against the prison’s head of investigations and his deputy, demanding his removal from the punishment cell and an end to the abuses he was subjected to. No investigation was opened into the complaint, nor were any measures taken by the Prison Authority to protect him.
During his final confinement in the punishment cell, Abu Al‑Ela was subjected to extremely harsh measures, including being stripped of all clothing and allowed only underwear and a single blanket, despite low temperatures. He was held in a cramped cell not exceeding three square meters, lacking ventilation or access to a toilet.
According to testimonies from neighboring detainees, the prisoner screamed for hours, pleading to be removed from the cell, reporting severe psychological distress, and threatening to end his life, without any intervention from prison authorities or provision of psychological or medical support. He was later found dead.
Upon receiving the body, the family observed clear signs of restraint and torture, including marks consistent with handcuffs on his wrists, contradicting the official narrative and reinforcing suspicions that he was subjected to serious abuses prior to his death.
CFJ calls for an independent, transparent judicial investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Mohamed Abu Al‑Ela Abu Saree’, including accountability for all those responsible for his repeated placement in punishment cells, examination of allegations of torture and neglect, and an end to the use of punishment cells as tools of cruel and degrading punishment. The committee further urges full compliance of detention facilities with constitutional, legal, and international standards that guarantee the right to life, physical integrity, and human dignity.
