University professor Dr Atta Youssef Abdel Latif, Professor of Physics at the Faculty of Science, Assiut University, has died while in detention at Badr Prison (3), after a severe deterioration in his health and the failure to provide the necessary medical care. The incident constitutes a grave violation of the right to life and the right to healthcare within places of detention.
Dr Atta suffered from serious chronic illnesses, including high blood pressure and cardiac disorders. Despite repeated complaints about the worsening of his health, no urgent medical measures were taken to save his life. He was transferred to hospital only at a late stage, where he passed away, indicating deliberate medical neglect and a clear breach of the state’s duty to protect the lives of detainees.
This death represents a stark example of policies of denial of medical treatment in prisons, whereby the lives of elderly detainees and those with chronic illnesses are placed at serious risk due to inadequate healthcare provision and the disregard of repeated complaints.
Such neglect constitutes a direct violation of the fundamental rights of persons in detention, including the right to life and the right to health, and amounts to a failure to uphold national and international legal obligations towards detainees.
The death of the detainee necessitates the opening of an urgent and transparent investigation to determine individual and institutional responsibility for the negligence and shortcomings, to ensure that such violations are not repeated, and to enforce legal accountability against all those responsible for depriving detainees of medical care—thereby safeguarding their lives and human dignity.
The case of Dr Atta remains a stark illustration of the consequences of medical neglect in prisons, and of the urgent need for systemic reforms to ensure respect for the basic rights of detainees and to put an end to policies that place their lives at risk.
