2016 prison census - Egypt: Abdullah al-Fakharany
| Publisher | Committee to Protect Journalists |
| Publication Date | 1 December 2016 |
| Cite as | Committee to Protect Journalists, 2016 prison census - Egypt: Abdullah al-Fakharany, 1 December 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/586cb8c23d.html [accessed 30 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
| Abdullah al-Fakharany, Rassd | |
|---|---|
| Medium: | Internet |
| Charge: | Anti-State |
| Imprisoned: | August 25, 2013 |
Rassd Executive Director Abdullah al-Fakharany was arrested on August 25, 2013, in the home of the son of a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood. Rassd co-founder Samhi Mustafa and Amgad TV presenter Mohamed al-Adly were arrested with him.
In February 2014, the three were charged with "spreading chaos" and "forming an operations room to direct the Muslim Brotherhood to defy the government" during the dispersal of the sit-in at Raba'a Al-Adawiya in Cairo, where Egyptians had gathered to protest the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi. The dispersal left hundreds dead, according to news reports. The Egyptian government has declared the Muslim Brotherhood to be a terrorist organization.
The prosecutor-general accused the Muslim Brotherhood of using several media outlets, including Rassd and Amgad TV, to support its plot to take over the government and spread lies about the military and the government.
Ahmed Helmy, Mustafa's lawyer, denied all of the charges against the journalists.
A Cairo criminal court sentenced all three journalists to life in prison on April 11, 2015. They had been tried along with dozens of other defendants including prominent leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood. Life sentences in Egypt are 25 years long, and can be appealed, according to news reports.
The Egyptian Court of Cassation accepted the request for an appeal on December 3, 2015, on the basis that there was insufficient evidence for the conviction, according to news reports. The retrial was ongoing in late 2016.
Al-Fakharany and Mustafa were being held in Tora prison, southeast of Cairo. Al-Fakharany has swelling in his Achilles tendon, preventing him from squatting to use the prison bathroom, according to the Free Abdullah al-Fakharany campaign.
In a letter from prison that was publicized on May 3, 2015, World Press Freedom Day, al-Fakharany described being beaten and abused in custody.
