- EGYPT
- November 5, 2017
- 4 minutes read
Human Rights Groups Hold Gov’t Responsible for Death of Nubian Activist Gamal Sorour
The first detainee taking part in the hunger strike by so called “al-Dfouf detainees” in Aswan died Saturday evening. Activist Gamal Sorour died inside al-Shallal prison camp in Aswan after suffering of diabetes complications.
“Al-Dfouf detainees” began an open-ended hunger strike last weekend to protest their continued detention without legal grounds as violations against political detainees in Aswan escalated.
Human rights’ lawyer Gamal Eid, head of the Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), held the police officers who conducted the mock investigations responsible for Sorour’s death.
“These fake investigations were the basis for the court’s ruling to renew the detention of Nubian prisoners, those of al-Dfouf (Tambourines)”
Eid emphasised that he and the detainees’ lawyers had travelled to Aswan to be present with the 25 Noubian prisoners of opinion at al-Shallal security camp last Monday.
He added that stark inconsistencies were prevalent, that the incident was impossible to believe, and that it contained much lying and fabrications that were proven in the opening statements. He said it was clear that they would inevitably be freed as the only true crime that occurred was their continued detention. Nonetheless, a surprise ruling was issued whereby their detention was extended 15 more days!
Mr. Eid said, “Those responsible for the death of Gamal Sorour, and of other innocents who die in jail while being wrongfully incarcerated, are the investigating officers who fabricated evidence, the Public Prosecution, the judge who issued the ruling, and the tyrannical political regime headed by al-Sisi.”
Gamal Sorour was arrested along with 24 other Nubians after the State accused them of taking part in al-Dfouf Nubian march in September of 2017 in which a number of Nubians peacefully demonstrated holding Tambourines to demand return of Nubians to the land confiscated from their ancestors in the 1960s to make way for the lake behind the High Dam on the Nile.
