A growing number of political detainees in Egypt are staging hunger strikes to protest inhumane conditions and systemic abuse, a human rights group said Monday, amid scrutiny following the recent deaths of three young men in police custody.
The Egyptian Network for Human Rights (ENHR) said detainees in Abu Zaebel 2 Prison have launched an open-ended food strike in solidarity with other political prisoners suffering “systematic punitive policies,” including torture, denial of medical care, and isolation. The protest, part of what ENHR called a wider “breaking of the fear barrier,” follows three custody deaths last week that the group blames on torture by security forces.
The group renewed its call after the reported death of Farid Shalaby at the Central Security Forces headquarters, operated by the National Security Agency in one of the country's regions, Kafr El-Sheikh Governorate. ENHR said Shalaby had been forcibly disappeared weeks earlier and tortured, leading to his death. He had reportedly been a fugitive for several years.
The organization alleges all three young men died from torture by police—claims the Ministry of Interior has not directly addressed.
The first reported death was that of university student Ayman Sabry, who was reportedly arrested on Saturday, July 19, and died nearly a week later on Friday, July 25, inside Belqas Police Station in Dakahlia Governorate after being subjected to “a week of deadly torture,” according to ENHR.
Following news of his death, the Ministry of Interior released a statement—without naming Sabry—saying the 21-year-old had been arrested on drug possession charges and died of cardiac arrest. However, Sabry’s family disputed the ministry’s account, stating his body showed signs of beatings and electric shocks.
His death triggered protests in front of the local court, with protesters clashing with security forces, according to footage circulated by journalists.
Less than 24 hours later, ENHR reported a second death: 25-year-old Karim Mohamed Abdo Badr died in police custody in Giza Governorate, near Cairo, on Sunday. He and his brother had allegedly been arrested on suspicion of trying to steal an auto rickshaw. Authorities have not commented on his death.
ENHR described the cases as part of “a long line of systematic violations perpetrated by the Egyptian Ministry of Interior, led by the National Security Agency, against detainees in official and secret detention facilities.” The group said these violations include physical and psychological torture, enforced disappearance, and denial of medical care, in “flagrant violation of the Egyptian Constitution and domestic laws, as well as international agreements ratified by Egypt.”
The Geneva-based Committee for Justice (CFJ) said the number of deaths in Egyptian prisons and detention centers has risen to 15 since the start of 2025. In 2024, the organization documented 50 such deaths.
