Urgent Statement from MP Hoda Ghaneya Against Arrest of Women in Abbassiya Clashes

Dr. Hoda Ghaneya, member of the Committee on Constitutional and Legislative Affairs at the Egyptian People’s Assembly and member of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) Parliamentary Commission, submitted an urgent statement about the imprisonment by the military prosecutor of 15 women who were arrested at random from Nour Mosque in Abbassiya, Cairo and detained for 15 days pending investigations on charges of sabotage of public facilities and assaulting army officers. They were first detained by the military police inside Nour Mosque for several hours. Then, officers opened the mosque’s doors and arrested the women.

The investigations were carried out with the women, at two o’clock in the morning. The ladies were then transferred to Qanatir prison, at six o’clock in the morning.

The lawmaker condemned the arrest and detention of the women, and called for their release immediately, especially as most of them are doctors who were in the Abbassiya field hospital helping treat the wounded and sought shelter in Nour Mosque when the events occurred.

MP Ghaneya was baffled at the arrest of such a large number of female doctors and journalists, while on Wednesday only 7 thugs were arrested, of whom 3 were released shortly afterwards, according to the Assistant Minister of Interior’s statement in the joint meeting of the four Committees on Defense, National Security, youth and Human Rights.