Asuhaimi was arrested in his home by a joint patrol of the police and the army on 1 August 2013, and brought him to the Montazah police station, allegedly for having participated to an "illegal demonstration" on 26 July 2013; having "damaged and committed deliberate acts of arson in public buildings"; and "being affiliated to an illegal group". Asuhaimi expressed his outrage at the facts presented, pleading that with his disability preventing him from moving without the help of a wheelchair, he could not be guilty of the charges he was accused of.

The Public Prosecutor nevertheless ordered his detention in Alexandria's Burj Al Arab prison, where has been detained ever since. On the basis of Egypt's Criminal Procedure Code, his detention has been constantly renewed, without motives, until 20 August 2014, the date that was set for his trial. However, the judge then decided to postpone his trial until further notice.

In addition to his disability, Asuhaimi suffers from diabetes and cardiac issues, a state of health that would normally require hospitalisation, or at the very least, regular visits from a doctor. However, and despite many calls from his lawyers, the authorities have constantly refused this right to Asuhaimi. In detention for over a year now, Ahuahimi is at high risk of heart attack, a risk aggravated by the allegations of ill-treatment that he reports having been subjected to.

"The detention of Asuhaimi is a glaring example of the abusive use of arbitrary detention in Egypt," states Ahmed Mefreh, Alkarama's Egypt Representative Egypt. "People are being arrested on trumped up charges, which is particularly striking in this case if you look at Asuhaimi's charges in the light of his state of health. If such situation occurs, it is because the people responsible for the investigation are also those fabricating such charges," he concludes.

In view of the information provided above, Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health to ask the Egyptian authorities to release him immediately. The Egyptian authorities should put an end to the endless practice of arbitrary detention and take the opportunity of the soon to be adopted amendments to the law on prisons to ensure the correct implementation of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.

For more information or an interview, please contact the media team at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Dir: +41 22 734 1007 Ext: 810)