Timeline
24/1 – Al-Sabbagh shot dead – party members arrested
25/1 – Forensic Medicine Authority (FMA) establishes initial statement that cause of death was birdshot in the back
26/1 – Former Minister of Interior Mohamed Ibrahim denies police involvement in Al-Sabbagh’s killing at press conference
27/1 – SPAP claims Ministry of Interior prevented the holding of Al-Sabbagh’s funeral in a famous mosque in Cairo
29/1 – Accusations and arrests of eyewitnesses, including detention of SPAP’s Vice-President Zohdy El-Shamy for one night
1/2 – Politicians and activists widely denounce police brutality
12/2 – Prosecutor-General Hisham Barakat orders media gag on case
22/2 – President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi names Al-Sabbagh’s case in a public speech, says “Every official will be held accountable for their shortcomings”
13/3 – SPAP headquarters in Alexandria raided, two members arrested then released
17/3 – Barakat refers police officer from Central Security Forces (CSF) to criminal court over alleged killing
18/3 – Two CSF officers accused of covering up for their partner by denying they have witnessed the shooting
23/3 – Police arrests Ashraf El-Shimy, party member in Alexandria
24/3 – FMA spokesperson Hisham Abdul Hamid dismissed over TV interview on Al-Sabbagh’s case, in which he said she died because she was “too thin” to resist birdshots
29/3 – Up to the current moment, lawyers are being denied a copy of the investigations’ report
The defence team consists of 53 lawyers, led by SPAP’s lawyer Ali Soliman and Head of the Lawyers’ Syndicate Sameh Ashour
- 11 Lawyers from SPAP headed by Ali Soliman, leader of defence team
- 16 Rights’ lawyers from several civic organisations
- 26 Independent rights’ lawyers
- Prominent human rights’ defenders include Khaled Ali, Mahienour El-Massry, Ragya Omran (NCHR), Tarek El-Awady, Tarek Nagida, Nasser Amin and Tamer Gomaa (Al-Dostour Party)
- Young lawyers familiar with protest law cases
Supporting NGOs
- 11 organisations and associations are involved in the case with 16 lawyers
- Nazra for Feminist Studies
- Egyptian Commissioner for Human Rights
- Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE)
- Al-Haqaneya Law Center
- Hisham Mubarak Law Center
- Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR)
- Nedal Center for Rights and Freedoms
- National Community for Human Rights and Law
- Cairo Center for Development (CCD)
- Middle East Human Rights Centre
- National Council for Human Rights (NCHR)
- 58 local NGOS signed a joint statement supporting the defendants on Saturday 28 March
- 44 politicians, lawyers and activists signed the statement
Police suspects in case:
– 1 CSF police officer, accused of manslaughter and intended injury of protesters
– 1 CSF officer and 1 conscript accused of covering up for their colleague and hiding evidence