Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

November 8, 2019

Egypt: "credible evidence" that "brutal" prison conditions prompted Morsi’s death, thousands more at risk

News

Africa Middle East Material conditions Egypt

A group of independent UN human rights experts said on Friday that there was “credible evidence” that inadequate prison conditions in which former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi was held may have led “directly” to his death in June, and thousands of other detainees may be at “severe risk”.

August 23, 2019

Egypt: urgent investigation needed after death in notorious Al-Aqrab prison

News

Africa Middle East Violence Egypt

Egyptian authorities must urgently carry out an independent and impartial investigation into the death of Hossam Hamed, a 30-year-old prisoner being held at al-Aqrab prison, amid allegations that he was tortured.

August 6, 2019

Egypt: el agujero negro de la cárcel de Al Aqrab

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: Spanish

July 31, 2019

Egypt: mass hunger strike at Al-Aqrab prison over denial of family visits and dire conditions

News

Africa Middle East Social ties Egypt

The Egyptian authorities must immediately end cruel and inhumane detention conditions and allow regular family visits at al-Aqrab maximum security prison in Tora where approximately 130 detainees have gone on a mass hunger strike for more than six weeks, said Amnesty International today.

July 31, 2019

Egypt: mass hunger strike in prison

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

About 130 inmates have been on hunger strike in an Egyptian prison for more than six weeks in protest at inhumane conditions and denial of family visits, according to Amnesty International.

July 10, 2019

Egypt: when doctors don't help: "medical negligence" in prison

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

Deliberately withholding medical treatment in Egyptian prisons and elsewhere amounts to torture, according to experts.

July 10, 2019

Egypt: detainees trapped in ‘revolving doors’ of prison system as authorities bypass release orders

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

The Egyptian authorities’ growing trend of re-imprisoning people who have been arbitrarily detained, instead of complying with court orders to release them is an alarming signal of how decayed the country’s justice system has become, said Amnesty International.

June 30, 2019

Egypt: ‘Hospitals are for the dying’, medical negligence inside Egyptian prisons

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

Inside his prison cell, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh’s health has severely deteriorated. The issue is not a new one. For years, local and international rights groups have repeatedly warned that conditions in Egypt’s prisons — especially access to health care — fell far below acceptable standards.

February 18, 2019

Un avocat égyptien jeté en prison pour un gilet jaune

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

This article is not available in English. This article is available in the following versions: French

December 31, 2018

Egypt: une femme en prison pour avoir dénoncé le harcèlement sexuel

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

July 11, 2018

Egypt: 710 prisoners released per presidential pardon

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

A total of 710 prisoners were released on Wednesday per a presidential pardon. The Prisons Authority continues to select the prisoners who qualify for conditional release, and those who served half of their sentences and were not involved in criminal cases.

January 3, 2018

L'enfer des prisons égyptiennes pour les détenus gays et trans

News

Africa Middle East LGBTQI Violence Egypt

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

June 23, 2017

Egypt: 502 prisoners pardoned for Eid al-Fitr

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pardoned 502 prisoners, on Friday, on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr.

June 17, 2017

Egypt: Egyptian court recommends death penalty for 30 over assassination of prosecutor

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

A Cairo criminal court on Saturday recommended the death penalty for 30 people convicted of involvement in the 2015 assassination of Egypt’s top prosecutor, the most senior state official killed by militants in recent years.

April 26, 2017

Egypt pardons 1,118 prisoners

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi yesterday signed a decree granting amnesty to 1,118 non- political prisoners on the anniversary of the liberation of Sinai, according to the country’s interior ministry.

April 15, 2017

Another 45 days: the endless uncertainty of pretrial detention in Egyptian prisons

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

Sabry has spent 2 years in prison on terrorism charges pending trial. His detention should legally end ‪on April 16, but will he get out ?

April 11, 2017

Egypt: a physician, committed to helping prisoners, imprisoned himself

Testimonial

Africa Middle East Egypt

“I was lucky, but many are beaten, raped, hung up by their hands…”

December 28, 2016

In Egypt, even helping street children can land you in prison

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

“She has read a lot of books,” says Basel Hijazi about his sister Aya. “Novels do help her escape the reality she is living.” The “reality” he’s referring to, others might call a nightmare. Aya Hijazi, who turns 30 in January, has been in an Egyptian prison since May 2014.

December 5, 2016

Egypte : Les peines de prison alourdies pour lutter contre l'excision

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

Sorry, this article is not available in English. You can consult the French version.

September 28, 2016

Egypt : abuses in Scorpion Prison

News

Africa Middle East Egypt

A report, based on 23 interviews with relatives of inmates, lawyers, and a former prisoner, documents abusive conditions in Scorpion. Authorities there have banned inmates from contacting their families or lawyers for months at a time, held them in degrading conditions without beds, mattresses, or…