The detained Egyptian journalist, Amer Abdel Moneim, 58, suffers from serious health deterioration as the prison authorities deprived him of receiving his medications.
Abdel Moneim, held in pretrial detention for the sixth month, suffers from a viral infection in the eye, which developed into a chronic infection, in addition to severe lower back pain as a result of sitting for long hours on the floor. He also suffers from diabetes, and he underwent two operations for his eye, two months before his arrest.
Amer Abdel Moneim, member of the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate, and managing editor of the People’s Newspaper has been detained since December 19, 2020 in case No. 1017 of 2020 State Security, on charges of joining a terrorist group, spreading false news, and using social networking site to commit crimes. It is worth noting that the Egyptian authorities systematically issue such charges against opponents and critics of the system.
The head of the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate, Diaa Rashwan, had submitted a memorandum to the Attorney General, Hamada El-Sawy, demanding the release of Abdel Moneim, allowing him to receive family visitations and to receive the necessary medicines, as well as his transfer to a specialised hospital, at no avail.
Since Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi assumed power in Egypt, the Egyptian authorities have been cracking down on dissidents, journalists and human rights defenders. It arrested thousands of citizens in politically motivated cases, where many were convicted and sentenced in unfair trials or held without trial for several years on baseless terrorism-related charges.
