Summary:
The arrest of 6 citizens, members of the Popular Committee to Support Palestine, in Alexandria and referring them to State Security Prosecution.
State Security investigations continue into 48 citizens, including journalist Yasser Abu Al-Ala, after 50 days of enforced disappearance.
Supreme State Security Prosecution releases 6 citizens with guarantee of their place of residence.
Security forces in Sharqia release 11 citizens with their release decisions nearly a month ago, following instructions from National Security.
The continuation of holding criminal trials before exceptional court circuits and inside prisons, away from the courts affiliated with the Ministry of Justice.
Cairo Criminal Court Terrorism Chamber continues non-stop to renew the pretrial detention of dozens of citizens in State Security cases.
Ministry of Interior denies that violations occurred inside Al-Qanater Prison, as well as kidnapping and torturing a child in a police station.
Former parliamentarian Al-Mohammadi Abdel Maqsoud died inside his prison cell in Wadi Al-Natroun prison due to the deterioration of his health.
Details
Arrest and Detention (enforced disappearance)
Monday, 29 April
Security forces in Alexandria arrested 6 citizens, and referred them the next day to the Supreme State Security Prosecution to investigate them on terrorism charges. They are Shadi Muhammad, Omar Sami, Abdullah Ahmed, Shehab El-Din Ashraf, Youssef Yasser, and Muhammad Ahmed.
Tuesday, 30 April
Security forces arrested the wife and sister of journalist Yasser Abu Al-Ela, who has been in enforced disappearance for 50 days, and took them to an unknown destination and without presenting them to any investigative body.
Prosecution Investigations
Supreme State Security Prosecution:
Supreme State Security Prosecution interrogated (during the newsletter’s coverage period) 48 citizens, and put them in pretrial detention for joining a terrorist group and financing and supplying a terrorist group, including journalist Yasser Abu Al-Ala, after 50 days of enforced disappearance.
Rotation Pending New Cases:
Zagazig Total Prosecution in Sharqia investigated 18 citizens after disrupting the procedures for their release from Zagazig Criminal Court last March, and placed them in pretrial detention on charges of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news.
Detention Renewal:
Monday, 29 April
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-III, in Badr Prison heard detention renewal sessions for dozens of citizens held in pre-trial detention pending cases. Cases No. are 325 of 2023, 540 of 2023, 1977 of 2022, 2113 of 2022, Supreme State Security.
Wednesday, 1 May
Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber rejected the appeal by 7 and upheld the decision to detain them for 45 days on charges of joining a terrorist group and spreading false news. They are Khaled Al-Taher Muhammad Shanab, Ahmed Muhammad Abdel Hamid Youssef Al-Gharbawi, Fedaa Ahmed Muhammad Al-Abbassi, Abdullah Ahmed Muhammad Al-Khudari, Ahmed Muhammad Ibrahim Abdel Aziz, Muhammad Ashraf Abdel Moeti Al-Din, and Abdel Moneim Ali Al-Demerdash Muhammad.
Acquittal:
Monday, 29 April
Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber in Sharqia decided to acquit 19 citizens after accepting their appeal against the prosecution’s decision to imprison them.
Tuesday, 30 April
Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber in Sharqia decided to accept the appeal by 34 citizens against the decision of pretrial detention and ordered their release with guarantee of residence.
Wednesday, 1 May
Zagazig Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber in Sharqia decided to acquit 8 citizens with guarantees of their place of residence on charges of of joining a terrorist group. They are Muhammad Al-Qushishi, Effat Salah, Ahmed Gamal, Alaa Maher, Ashraf Abdel Moneim, Moaz Magdi, Khairat Abdel Galil, and Ahmed Alaa Abdel Moneim.
Thursday, 2 May
Supreme State Security Prosecution in Cairo decided to acquit 5 citizens with guarantees of their place of residence. They are Nasser Hamid Morsi Ali in Case No. 2070 of 2022, Ashraf Saeed Muhammad Amer in Case No. 2094 of 2022, Muhammad Hussein Othman Abdel Hafez in Case No. 440 of 2023, Mustafa Musa Abdel Maqsoud Al-Khouli in Case No. 508 of 2023, and Ibrahim Ismail Lotfi Ahmed in Case No. 1976 of 2023.
Release:
Monday, 29 April
The security forces in Sharqia released 11 citizen after completing the procedures for the validity of their release by Zagazig Criminal Court last February.
Trials:
Monday, 29 April
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber –III, held in Badr Prison postponed the retrial of 64 defendants in the case known in the media as The New Cairo Terrorist Cell case to the session on 9 June 2024.
Tuesday, 30 April
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-III, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 1 defendant, in the case known in the media as Media Production City Incident Case to the session on 25 May 2024.
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-III, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 4 defendants, in the case known in the media as Omrania ISIS cell case to the session on 25 May 2024.
Saturday, 4 May
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-I, held in Badr Prison postponed the trail of 5 defendants, in the case known in the media as Ismailia Cell case to the session on 7 July 2024.
Cairo Economic Court, Misdemeanor Appeal reserved the trial of 11 defendants on charges of publishing false news and data in the case of the Al-Arish University student to the sentencing session on 25 May 2024.
Sunday, 5 May
Cairo Criminal Court, Terrorism Chamber-I, 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 6 July 2024, in view of Easter celebrations.
Legislations and decisions:
Monday, 29 April
The Attorney General issued Resolution No. 598 of 2024 regarding adding jurisdiction to protect the elderly to the Office of Child Protection and Persons with Disabilities in the Judicial Inspection Department of the Attorney General’s Office.
Statements:
Tuesday, 30 April
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior published, through its official Facebook page a statement denying what it described as “what has been circulating on the Muslim Brotherhood media outlets”, about the violations in Al-Qanater Prison, stressing on the abolishing of Al-Qanater Prison and there are no male or female inmates in it. The statement added that this confirms what the terrorist group and its loyal elements have continued to promote and fabricate false allegations in an attempt to create confusion.
Thursday, 2 May
The Egyptian Ministry of Interior published, through its official Facebook page a statement denying what it described “what has been circulating on the Muslim Brotherhood media outlets”, about the kidnapping of a child and his exposure to torture in a police station in Cairo.
Prison news:
Thursday, 2 May
The death of Former parliamentarian Al-Mohammadi Abdel Maqsoud in his prison cell in Wadi Al-Natron Prison. He had a death sentence and died following the deterioration of his health because of his cancer. .
Legal Comment
Egyptian security forces did not only arrest journalist Yasser Abu Al-Ela putting him in enforced disappearance for 50 days without bringing him before any investigative body while depriving his family, children, and elderly mother of his care for them. In fact, on 30 April, they stormed the family home again, arrested his wife and sister, terrorized his children, and took them to an unknown destination. That happened despite the fact that the Egyptian Constitution stipulates in it article 54 the protection of the personal freedom of citizens.
The security forces in Al-Sharqia obstructed the implementation of release decisions and sentences in favor of citizens and rotated them again in connection with new cases bearing the same charges, after the National Security Service detained and putting them in enforced disappearance for varying periods. That came to establish the phenomenon of rotation to new cases, and to demonstrate to everyone the upper hand of the security services over the rights and freedoms of citizens.