On 16 November, security agents in plain clothes arrested Egyptian social media figure Islam al-Refaei. The Egyptian authorities ordered him to be detained on the trumped-up charge of “belonging to a banned group”. On 13 December, the Supreme State Security Prosecution ordered the renewal of Islam al-Refaei’s detention for 15 more days, pending investigation for “belonging to a banned group”, and added six more individuals to the case.
1) TAKE ACTION
Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet:
- Immediately and unconditionally release Islam al-Refaei, Hossam el-Swefy and Ahmed Abdel Aziz, as they are imprisoned solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression or peaceful assembly;
- Ensure that, while detained, the three men have all their due process rights upheld, including access to legal representation and the right to challenge the lawfulness of their detention;
- Cease the practice of prolonged and arbitrary pre-trial detention.
Contact these two officials by 31 January, 2018:
Public Prosecutor
Nabil Sadek
Office of the Public Prosecutor, Dar al-Qada al-Ali, Down Town
Cairo, Arab Republic of Egypt
Fax: +20225774716
Salutation: Dear Counsellor
Ambassador Yasser Reda, Embassy of Egypt
3521 International Ct NW, Washington DC 20008
Phone: 202 895 5400
Fax: 202 244 4319 OR 202 244 5131
Email: [email protected]
Salutation: Dear Ambassador
2) LET US KNOW YOU TOOK ACTION
Click here to let us know if you took action on this case! This is Urgent Action 277.17
Here’s why it is so important to report your actions: we record the actions taken on each case—letters, emails, calls and tweets—and use that information in our advocacy.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES