Egypt: Urgent Request for the Release of Former Governor Dr. Hossam Abouelezz
On 19 September 2024, Alkarama submitted a complaint to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) on behalf of Dr. Hossam Abouelezz, former governor of Qalyubia, who has been arbitrarily detained since September 2013. This complaint underscores the prolonged and arbitrary nature of his detention, along with the grave human rights violations he has endured, including enforced disappearance, solitary confinement, and denial of contact with his family and legal counsel. These long-standing conditions amount to torture, causing both physical and psychological suffering for Dr. Abouelezz and his family.
This recent submission follows a prior urgent appeal that was addressed to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture on 16 February 2022. The earlier complaint detailed severe violations of Dr. Abouelezz’s rights, including lenghy incommunicado detention and enforced disappearance, denial of legal representation, and the deprivation of necessary medical care, highlighting that the effects of these conditions on both him and his family amounts to torture.
Arbitrary arrest and unfair trials
Dr. Abouelezz, a respected university professor of engineering, was appointed governor of Qalyubia following the election of Mohamed Morsi. However, after the military coup that ousted Morsi and brought Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to power, Dr. Abouelezz lost his position. On 17 September 2013, while traveling in a car with a friend, he was stopped at a random police checkpoint in Cairo. Upon verifying his identity, the police immediately took him to an undisclosed location without providing any explanation or warrant for his arrest.
For two months, Dr. Abouelezz’s family was left without any knowledge of his whereabouts, as he was kept in a state of enforced disappearance. His family later discovered he was being held in Tora Maximum Security Prison and that he had been charged in a secret hearing without legal assistance with various charges including “premeditated murder,” “participation in premeditated murder,” “incitement to premeditated murder,” and “seizure and possession of weapons”, in one of the mass trials that followed the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators in the Rabaa sit-in.
In 2015, Dr. Hossam Abouelezz was sentenced to death in the highly controversial Rabaa Operation Room case. This case sought to hold various leaders, state officials from the previous administration, as well as activists, journalists, and peaceful protesters, collectively responsible for the deaths and injuries that occurred during the violent dispersal of the Rabaa sit-in. The trial was widely criticised for its lack of due process and its broad, collective charges.
Although the initial death sentence was overturned upon appeal, a retrial in 2017 resulted in a life imprisonment sentence, with the charges being downgraded to "participating in a beating that resulted in death." This revised charge still failed to provide clear evidence of Dr. Abouelezz's individual responsibility, reflecting the political nature of his prosecution.
Inhumane Conditions of Detention and Enforced Disappearance
For the past 11 years, Dr. Hossam Abouelezz has been held in solitary confinement under appalling conditions, first in Scorpion Prison and later in Badr 3 Prison. Throughout this period, he has been secretly moved by the authorities between different detention facilities without any formal acknowledgment or notification to his family. Each transfer was carried out in complete secrecy, leaving his family in a prolonged state of uncertainty regarding his fate and whereabouts. Only through indirect channels—such as other detainees or their lawyers—was his family able to learn of his location, often long after the transfer had occurred. The authorities have never provided any direct information, heightening the psychological suffering inflicted on his loved ones.
Unofficial information received by Dr. Abouelezz's family indicates that he has been confined to cells that lack natural light and proper ventilation. Despite suffering from serious chronic conditions, including diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure, he has been consistently denied access to adequate medical care. His family, who has been denied all forms of contact with him, continues to be deprived of official updates regarding his health and well-being. This prolonged lack of communication exacerbates their anxiety and deepens the uncertainty about his condition.
Over the years, the authorities have persistently refused all requests for family visits, legal representation, or even basic communication, leaving Dr. Abouelezz completely isolated. His prolonged solitary confinement and the authorities' refusal to provide official updates about his whereabouts constitute a prolonged state of enforced disappearance, which is recognised under international law as a severe form of torture, not only against the detainee but also against their family.
His family continues to endure extreme psychological distress, not knowing if he is still alive, and the lack of medical treatment for his conditions further raises fears that his life is in serious danger—reminiscent of the death of former President Mohamed Morsi, who passed away in similar detention conditions.
Alkarama’s Requests to the UN Experts
Alkarama argued that Dr. Abouelezz has been arbitrarily and unlawfully deprived of his liberty, subjected to inhumane treatment, and denied his fundamental rights under international law. On this basis it requested the WGAD to declare his detention as arbitrary and to call for his immediate release, along with an enforceable right to compensation.
Given the severity of his detention conditions, Alkarama also urged the WGAD to issue an urgent appeal for his release. The prolonged solitary confinement, denial of family contact, and his state of enforced disappearance for the past 11 years amounting to torture, not only for Dr. Abouelezz but also for his family.
Alkarama remains determined to continue its efforts to bring justice to the victims of arbitrary detention in Egypt and to obtain compensation for the physical and psychological harm and injustice caused to Dr Abouelezz and his family.
For further information, please contact us at info@alkarama.org