Justice Observatory in Egypt from January 1 to January 7, 2024

Summary:

1. State Security investigations continue into 18 citizens on charges of terrorism and spreading false news.
2. The continuation of rotating citizens in Sharqia, to new cases by the Supreme State Security Prosecution, after the disruption of procedures for their release.
3. The continuation of holding criminal trials before exceptional court circuits and inside prisons, away from the courts affiliated with the Ministry of Justice.
4. Cairo Criminal Court Terrorism Chamber continues non-stop to renew the pretrial detention of dozens of citizens in State Security cases.
5. Ministry of Interior grants inmates in Egyptian prisons – except cases and prisons with prohibited visitation – an exceptional visit celebrating Coptic Christmas.
6. In the first week of 2024, two citizens died in prison after their health condition deteriorated.

Details

1- Prosecution Investigations:

• Supreme State Security Prosecution:

1. Supreme State Security Prosecution interrogated (during the newsletter’s coverage period) 18 citizens, and put them in pretrial detention for joining a terrorist group and financing and supplying a terrorist group.

 

• Public Prosecution:

Thursday, 4 January

1. 10th of Ramadan Prosecution Office in Sharqia investigated citizens Ashraf Abdel Hadi Kassab, after arresting him from his home in Faqous, and accused him of joining a terrorist group and spreading false new.

2- Rotation Pending New Cases:

Thursday, 4 January

1. South Zagazig Total Prosecution in Sharqia investigated 5 citizens (Mohamed Abdel-Hadi, Mahmoud Mohamed Helmi, Ibrahim El-Bailey, Sami Abdel-Hadi, Abdel-Azim Kamel Abdel-Azim) after the disruption of procedures for their release, and placed them in pretrial detention on charges of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.
2. Abu Kebir Prosecution in Sharqia investigated Mohammad Yasser, after the disruption of procedures for his release, and placed him in pretrial detention on charges of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.

3- Detention Renewal:

Tuesday 2 January

1. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-I, in Badr Prison heard detention renewal sessions for dozens of citizens held in pre-trial detention pending cases. Cases No. are 867 of 2005, 471 of 2017, 1331 of 2018, 563 of 2019, 1780 of 2019, 58 of 2020, 460 of 2020, 502 of 2020, 534 of 2020, 558 of 2020, 7 30 of 2020, 786 of 2020, 1056 of 2020, 65 of 2021, 590 of  2021, 620 of 2021, 656 of  2021, 900 of  2021, 1690 of  2021, 2065 of  2021, 2397 of  2021, 2467 of  2021, 2544 Of  2021, 2714 of  2021, 2739 of  2021 2976 of  2021, 5 of  2022, 40 of  2022, 305 of  2022, 440 of  2022, 633 of  2022, 1540 of  2022, 1633 of  2022, 1654 of  2022, 1940 of  2022, 2069 of 2022, 2182 of 2022, 2514 Of  2022, 88 of  2023, 325 of  2023, 422 of  2023, 524 of  2023, 540 of  2023, 585 of  2023, 860 of  2023, 1233 of  2023, 1301 of  2023, 1470 of  2023, 1973 of  2023, 1976 of  2023, Supreme State Security.

 

Wednesday, 3 January

1. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-I, in Badr Prison heard detention renewal sessions for dozens of citizens held in pre-trial detention pending cases. Cases No. are 725 of 2014, 29 of 2016, 277 of 2019, 488 of 2019 including journalist Mustafa Al-Khateeb, 515 of 2019, 810 of 2019, including publisher Ismail Al-Qemary, 1118 of 2019, 131 8 of 2019, 1400 of  2019, 1470 of  2019, 1779 of  2019, 335 of  2020, 571 of  2020, 1021 of  2020, 1022 of  2020, 1110 of  2020, 482 of  2021, 1934 of  20 21, 2207 of  2021, 1097 of  2022, 1473 of  2022, 1643 of  2022, 1644 of  2022, 1650 of  2022, 2032 of  2022, 2185 of  2022, 2216 of  2022, 2572 of  2022, 85 of  2023, 130 of  2023, 185 Of  2023, 192 of  2023, 333 of  2023, 708 of 2023, 710 of 2023, 1978 of 2023, Supreme State Security.
2. Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber renewed the detention of Sameh Ahmed Shawqi for 45 days pending investigations, in Case No. 1563 of 2021, Zagazig-II.
3. Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber renewed the detention of Ahmed Saber Abdel Hamid Abdullah for 45 days pending investigations after accusing him of joining a terrorist group, publishing false news and statements, and misusing social media, in Case No. 17018 of 2021, Zagazig-II.

 

Thursday 4 January

1. Banha Total Prosecution renewed the detention of activist Ahmed Hamdi Al-Said Suleiman, known as “Ahmed Jeeka, for 15 days pending investigations in case No. 3117 of 2023, Kafr Shukr Administrative.

4- Release from police custody:

Tuesday 2 January

1. The security forces at 10th of Ramadan Police Station in Sharqia released citizen Ahmed Mohamed Ibrahim Al-Sawyi after completing the procedures for the validity of his release by Zagazig Criminal Court.

 

Thursday 4 January

1. The security forces at Zagazig Police Station in Sharqia released 3 citizen (Abdel Qader Mohamed Abdel Qader, Mahmoud Hassan, Ahmed Salah) after completing the procedures for the validity of their release in the session on 30 December 2023.

5- Trials:

Tuesday 2 January

1. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber –I, held in Badr Prison postponed the retrial of 1 defendant in the case known in the media as ISIS October Cell case to the session on 16 March 2024.
2. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber –I, held in Badr Prison postponed the retrial of 2 defendants in the case known in the media as ISIS Helwan Cell case to the session on 20 April 2024.

 

Wednesday, 3 January

1. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-I, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 1 defendant, in the case known in the media as Downton Violence Incident to the sentencing session on 19 February 2024.

 

Saturday, 6 January

1. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-II, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 1 defendant, in the case known in the media as Mataria Violence Incident to the session on 9 January 2024.
2. Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-II, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 22 defendants, in the case known in the media as the administrative structure of the Muslim Brotherhood to the session on 10 January 2024.

6- Legislations and decisions:

Tuesday 29 August

1. Ministry of Interior grants inmates in Egyptian prisons – except cases and prisons with prohibited visitation – an exceptional visit for Coptic Christmas from 8 – 24 January 2024.

 

7- Prison news:

Monday, 2 January

1. The death of Adel Radwan Othman Mohammad in his prison cell in 10th of Ramadan Prison. He was in pretrial detention pending case No. 1513 of 2022, Darb Negm.

 

Saturday, 6 January

1. The death of lawyer Mohamed El-Sherbini Ali El-Said in his prison cell in Badr Prison, after his health condition deteriorated following multiple transfers from one prison to another and settling in Badr Prison to undergo PET scan for many diseases, including cancerous tumors..

Legal Comment

With the beginning of the New Year, Supreme State Security Prosecution continues investigating dozens.

As Supreme State Security Prosecution investigated – during the newsletter’s coverage period – 18 citizens, and put them in pretrial detention for joining a terrorist group and financing and supplying a terrorist group, based National Security reports. Those citizens include arrests and appearances from varying periods of disappearance.

In investigating the citizens, the prosecution relied on the articles of the Anti-Terrorism Law No. 94 of 2015, amended by Law No. 15 of 2020, which carries suspicion of unconstitutionality, especially Article 40, which gives the right to the judicial police officer to detain citizens for 14 days before presenting them to the prosecution for investigation.

 

The New Year is no different from the previous year with regard to the issue of pretrial detention, as Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chambers, in Badr Prison, continued to renew the pretrial detention of dozens of citizens pending investigation by the Supreme State Security Prosecution, and on vague charges.

Those charges have no single piece of evidence in the papers, except for the investigations of the National Security Sector, which sees all citizens as belonging to a terrorist group.

In addition to those who exceeded the maximum limit of pretrial detention stipulated in the last paragraph of the text of Article 143 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The text states that the violation is limited to a period of 6 months in misdemeanors, 18 months for felonies, and two years if the crime is punishable by death or life.

Among the detainees is journalist Mustafa Al-Khateeb, who has entered his fifth year in pretrial detention in Case No. 488 of 2019 since his arrest in October 2019.

 

The death of both Adel Radwan Othman and Muhammad El-Sherbini Ali.

The latter suffered the deterioration of his health condition after his transfer from the 10th of Ramadan Prison to Badr Prison to undergo a PET scan for several cancerous tumors.

This confirms that prolonged pretrial detention is the graveyard that the authorities use to get rid of citizens, and it has transformed from being a precautionary measure for the benefit of the investigation into a tool of revenge for the benefit of the authorities.