- EGYPT
- August 15, 2015
- 5 minutes read
1104 Deaths Documented, Verified So Far – Confirmed Victims of Egypt Junta’s Rabaa Massacre
The Rabaa Story Foundation (RSF) issued today (Friday, August 14, 2015) its first report on victims of the Rabaa Al-Adaweya and Nahda break-up massacres by brutal military junta forces.
RSF’s Documentation Unit has obtained data and complete information about 1104 victims so far, of whom 868 people were killed during the violent dispersal of peaceful protesters by military and army forces in the Rabaa and Nahda squares, 199 were killed in demonstrations on the same day outside the sit-ins in Cairo and other governorates, and 37 people went missing and have been missing from among Rabaa and Nahda square protesters since the violent break-up by junta forces.
RSF’s Documentation Unit stresses that these results can be viewed as a reliable initial not final basis that should be built upon in the full documentation of all victims of the massacre.
RSF added that its team of 53 researchers in several committees worked their way through seven documentation stages, which began with the collection of data and information from human rights organizations, NGOs and civil monitoring agencies, as well as reports and data from the Egyptian Ministry of Health and other government agencies. This was followed by a review, audit and screening stage, then completion of the data and on the ground research to verify accuracy.
The documentation included deaths recorded in official permits, reports and documents, deaths mentioned in official documents, semi-official reports issued by credible institutions (such as the Egyptian Medical Syndicate), deaths verified with photographs and videos, deaths recorded by credible sources (e.g. the main field hospital in Rabaa), and deaths verified by human rights organizations and activists whose documentation and monitoring standards were found to be in agreement with international standards.
In its report, RSF’s Documentation Unit mentioned that its investigation process faced many obstacles, including the fact that many victims were buried without official permits because junta authorities refused to issue burial permits or death certificates. Moreover, families of victims not affiliated to any political currents or entities feared reprisals by junta agencies and so refrained from registering the death of their loved ones as part of the massacre aftermath. Also, RSF’s Documentation Unit reached many victims who belonged to poor families who never communicated with any media outlets about the death of their loved ones. There are many more of these, who have so far been missed out by monitoring and documentation efforts.
RSF affirms that all its teams continue to work on the completion and update of data and information for victims of the Rabaa and Nahda sit-in break-up massacres, to safeguard the rights of victims and preserve their memory.
RSF calls upon all the victims’ families, and citizens who witnessed the sit-in massacres, to support its Documentation Unit with all relevant information, documents, photos and videos they have which may help it complete its work to the fullest.
Please email all the information you have to RSF Documentation Unit: [email protected]
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