Dozens detained following Alexandria Court clashes

Salma Hegab
2 Min Read

Dozens of protesters have been detained amidst clashes in front of Mansheyya Court in Alexandria, while the trial of police officers accused of killing protesters in the 25 January Revolution goes on.

Activist Mahinour Al Massry told the Daily News Egypt—an hour before she was detained and subsequently released from the office of the prosecutor general—that the clashes on Sunday were a result of claims that lawyers representing the families of killed protesters were attacked inside the court by Central Security Forces.

Al Massry said: “Protesters were tear gassed excessively, and I saw a police car burn while protesters were randomly detained.”

Later on Monday afternoon, activists filed a complaint inside Mansheyya Courts Complex, at the prosecutor general’s office, when they were allegedly attacked and detained by police personnel.

Activist Noha Kamal, who was among the activists, said after her release that only lawyer Hassan Mostafa was kept and his whereabouts are still not known. According to the Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights, Mostafa will be investigated on charges of assaulting on a prosecutor.

Nine protesters were detained for four days pending investigation for the charge of “Burning Alexandria Court and stealing content” and “Destruction of Public Property”, according to Lawyer Mohamed Hafez, member of the National Community for Human Rights. Among the nine protesters are minors Omar Hisham Mahgoub, 14, and Abdel Rahman Mohamed El Sayed, 17.

Hamdy Khalaf, lawyer at the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, says the prosecutor general himself gave the four day detention order to a Mansheyya Judge by phone.

Khalaf added: “An eleven year old boy (Mohamed Gaber) is among those being detained in Al Labban area, but still we do not know enough information about him.”

Khalaf said the chief of Alexandria detectives, Nasser El Abd, declared around 30 detainees.

The Ministry of Interior was not available to comment.

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