18 November 2009

Egypt: Update - 22 Muslim Brotherhood detainees released

Alkarama has received news from inside Egypt of the release of several members of Muslim Brotherhood, some of whose cases Alkarama had previously submitted to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD). On 27 October 2009, Alkarama submitted 112 cases to the WGAD, all in connection with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Details of releases

On 14 November 2009, Egypt Security Services released Adel Abdulraheem Afifi, a Muslim Brotherhood leader from Giza, along with eight others:

1. Othman Mohamed Al-Nadi

2. Dr. Musaad Ali Qatab

3. Abdel Rahman al-Gamal

4. Ali Ali al-Hadidi

5. Hazim al-Jundi

6. Reda Fahmi

7. Dr. Mohamed Taha Wahdan

8. Gamal Abdul Salam

On the morning of Tuesday, 17 November 2009, Dr. Abdul Moneim Abu al-Fatouh, Secretary General of the Arab Doctors Union, was released after a decision by the State Security Prosecution for his discharge. His release comes after five months of detention.

On the same morning of 17 November 2009, Dr. Osama Nasreddine was released along with eleven others:

1. Ali Abdul Fatah

2. Esam al-Haddad

3. Ashraf Abdul al-Samia

4. Mohamed Saad Aliwa

5. Mohamed al-Azabaoui

6. Mahmoud al-Bara

7. Waleed Shalbi

8. Dr. Homad Abu Bakr

9. Ali Abdul Fotouh

10. Dr. Ibrahim Mustafa

11. Al-Hosseini Mahmoud al-Shami, released in the early hours of 18 November 2009

This puts the total number of releases to 22 in the last week, 17 cases of which were sent by Alkarama to the WGAD on 1 November 2009. Alkarama continues to follow the cases of those arbitrarily detained in Egypt for their political or religious beliefs or for their desire to participate in the politics of their country. Alkarama will also inform the relevant United Nations Special Procedures of the developments in these cases.

Egypt - HR Instruments

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)

ICCPR: Ratified on 14.01.1982
Optional Protocol: No

State report: Overdue since 01.11.2004 (4th)
Last concluding observations: 28.11.2002

Convention against Torture (CAT)

CAT: Accessed on 25.06.1986
Optional Protocol: No
Art. 20 (Confidential inquiry): Yes
Art. 22 (Individual communications): No

State report: Due on 25.06.2016 (initially due in 2004)
Last concluding observations: 23.12.2002

International Convention for the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance (CED)

No

Universal Periodic Review (UPR)

Last review: 02.2010 (1st cycle)
Next review: 2014 (2nd cycle)

National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)

National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) – Status A

Last review: 10.2006
Next review: Deferred