12 March 2010

Egypt : 42 electoral candidates and 145 protestors arrested in one day

42 Muslim Brotherhood leaders were arrested from their homes earlier this morning. After Friday prayers today, 53 protestors were arrested outside Abu Magda Mosque in Al-Ismaliya and 70 more in Maidan Al-Sharqiya, of which eight are women, following demonstrations against the blockading Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem by Israeli forces earlier today.
The violent crackdown on protestors seems to be a reprisal by the Egyptian Government following the recent announcement by numerous Muslim Brotherhood leaders of their candidatures for the upcoming legislative election.

In the early hours of 12 March 2010, 42 leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood were arrested from their home in a wave of arrests that swept across four Egyptian governorates: Al-Bahira, Al-Sharqiya, Al-Munufeya and Al-Daqhliya. These individuals were arrested after many of them announced earlier this week that they would be running in Egypt's parliamentary elections, due in November 2010. For example, Mohamed Al-Faki, Abd Al-Nasser Abu Al-Dahab and Akasha Abad (محمد الفقي وعبد الناصر أبو الدهب وعكاشة عباد) all made seperate announcements that they would be running in the elections in November. They are now detained in the State Security buildings, solely due to their desire to take part in the politics of their country. The names of the 42 individuals arrested are listed below.

These mass arrests come less than a month after Alkarama submitted the cases of 80 leaders and members of the Muslim Brotherhood arrested from Cairo, Giza, Al-Sharqiya, Al-Daqhliya and Al-Gharbiya to the Special Rapporteur on the Freedom of Expression on 12 February 2010. Among these were three key figures of the Muslim Brotherhood: Dr Mahmoud Ezzat, Dr Esam Al-Aryan and Dr Abdulrahman Al-Barr.

145 Protestors Arrested

Earlier today Israeli security forces prevented hundreds of worshippers from performing Friday prayers at Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Since the early hours of Friday morning, Israeli occupying forces deployed large numbers of police units and border guards around the city.

This move not only sent Jerusalem into chaos but sparked reactions throughout the region, and in particular in Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood called for nationwide protests, which the Egyptian security services reacted to especially harshly - likely in an attempt to disrupt support for the Muslim brotherhood, following the abovementioned public statements.

The Egyptian State Security Intelligence services, with the aid of General Investigative services and Central Security agents mobilized efforts in a massive campaign of arrests. Maidan Al-Sharqiya was the worst hit region, suffering more than 70 arrests of which eight are women. Demonstrations also took place at Abu Magda Mosque in Al-Ismaliya where some 53 demonstrators were detained, and in Alexandria where 22 people were arrested by security forces.

Alkarama deplores the continued repression of opposition movements within Egypt. These mass arrests follow the arrest and torture earlier this week of Doctor Taha Abdel Tawab Mohammed, a supporteur of Mohamed Al Baradei,the former head of the IAEA and recipient of the nobel peace prize, who seems to be aiming to run in the presidential elections. Alkarama is collecting information regarding these individuals and will be informing the appropriate UN human rights mechanisms of these new arrests.

42 candidates in Parliamentary elections arrested

Arrested in Al-Bahira: Professor Mr Nazili, official administrative office of the Muslim Brotherhood in Giza, Mohamed Al-Fiqi, Abdul Nasser Abu Al-Dahab, and Akasha Abaada (former candidates of the Muslim Brotherhood in the parliamentary elections), and Abdel Fattah Hanafi, and Dr Ahmad Murad, and Rafat Saad, Dr Hossam Shandi, and Mohammed Abu Al-Qasim, Muhammad Hussain, Khalid Fadl, Ali Jaber, Abdel Karim Abdulmaksoud, and Abdulfattah Fathi, Alaa Mohammad Ali.

Arrested in Al-Sharqiya: Dr Abdul Hamid, a former member of the parliament, Dr Amir Bassam (Professor and Chairman, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University), Ahmed Mahmoud Mohamed Yamani, Agricultural Engineer Management in Baleis, Dr Ismail Ali (Professor and Head of Advocacy and Islamic Culture at the Faculty of Theology, Al-Azhar University Mansoura Branch - from Kafr Saqr), Dr Abdul Abdullah Majeed (Professor of Urology at the University of Zagazig), Dr Said Mansour (pediatrician at Fakous Hospital), and Abdulnasser Abdulhamid (Secondary school maths teacher in Fakous), and Sheikh Shabal (Imam and preacher in Mina Al-Qamh), and Mohammed Abdrab Al-Rasul (a teacher Mina Al-Qamh).

Arrested in Al-Munufeya: Dr Abdullah Al-Nahas and Osama Younis, Tareq Al-Sharif (from Shabein Al-Kom), Dr Jamal Khalifa (from Al-Shahida), Dr Ahmed Shaheen, Khaled Al-Sawi (from Barka Al-Sabaa), and Dasooqi Abu Issa (from Menouf), and Mohamed Gabr (from Quesna), and Sami Al-Usta (from Tila).

Arrested in Daqahliya: Ibrahim Saleh, Dr Mohammed Haikal (pharmacist), Dr Awad Mohamed (pharmacist), and Saber Abu Zeid (teacher), Dr Mohammed Al-Zamity (Hospital Insurance Director in Mit Ghamer), Ramadan Al-Khatib (agricultural engineer), Abdel Fattah Abu Hassan, and Adel Abdulrahman (secondary school teacher), and Salah Saad.

The names of 53 of the detained protestors :

1. Mohammed Shteiwi
2. Faraj Sabri
3. Ahmed Ahmed Abdullah
4. Mohammed Salim
5. Mahmoud Gad Al-Rab
6. Rashid Awada Haikal
7. Farih Awada
8. Suleiman Mansour
9. Ahmed Younis
10. Suleiman Ibrahim Abdel Rab Nabi
11. Yasir Haggag
12. Zahran Al-Said
13. Mohamed Abdulrahman
14. Suleiman Haggag
15. Mohammed Ibrahim
16. Abdelkader Ayed
17. Motawla Ali Salah
18. Adnan Labib
19. Ashraf Jibali
20. Abdul Rahman Rafat
21. Osama Rafat
22. Ahmad Rafat
23. Abdullah Ali Gharib
24. Ibrahim Rushdie
25. Hossam Hassan
26. Ahmad Awwad
27. Hisham Ali Salem
28. Hudhifa Awad Al-Dawa
29. Mahmoud Abou Al-Anein
30. Mohamed Taha
31. Ismail Gareesh
32. Mohamed Ahmed Abbas
33. Ahmed Abdel Muata Ashmawi
34. Tamer Fozy
35. Reda Ayad
36. Khaled Talaat Khaled
37. Mahmoud Salem
38. Jamal Hamid
39. Mohammed Saber Mohammed Mahdi
40. Abdulrahman Abdel Salam Hazein
41. Abdullah Ahmad Al-Fiqi
42. Hossam Hassan Saada
43. Rida Said
44. Sweilem Mohammed Swailem
45. Mohamed Madbouli
46. Ibrahim Madbouli
47. Ahmed Madbouli
48. Ahmed Mohamed Ismail
49. Yasser Mohamed Ammam
50. Hassan Al-Mansi
51. Wael Hassan Mohamed Issa
52. Rufai Al-Aaidi
53. Tamer Hassoona

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