The father of the Egyptian political detainee, Aya Kamal el-Din, has reported that due to the conditions of her imprisonment, “Aya’s life is in great danger.”
In a letter addressed to human rights organisations, Mr. Kamal el-Din wrote: “Aya had a court session on Saturday [29 January]. She complained to the judge that she was ill, and that she has been confined to a holding cell — the type of cell that detainees are held in before being sent to a wing — since July 2022. She has been subjected to abuse, and had her clothes and blankets taken; other detainees have harassed her.
“And to increase the humiliation, Aya’s mother, who is elderly, left our home in Alexandria at 3am only this morning, and arrived at the Qanatir Prison around four hours later”, Mr Kamal el-Din explained.
“After having waited in the visitor’s area, [Aya’s mother] was surprised to be encouraged to leave without having visited her daughter. It was only minutes before the end of the visit that Aya was brought out.”
Aya suffers from multiple health problems including asthma. However, the prison administration refuses to provide her with the proper medications, and has even prevented her family from providing them.
The Egyptian authorities arrested activist Aya Kamal el-Din, a graduate of the Institute of Islamic Studies, on 3 July 2022, on charges of spreading “false news”. It was her third arrest since 2013.
Aya was among 14 women who were sentenced by an Alexandria court to lengthy prison sentences for their participation in a demonstration in support of the late President Mohamed Morsi, who was ousted by a military coup.
Aya was re-arrested in 2020 after she posted a comment on Facebook about the death of an army commander after he contracted Covid-19. El-Din was then accused by several prominent figures of “criticizing President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi”.
