Egyptian high school student Mahmoud Mohamed Hussein was referred to State Security prosecutors on Wednesday after remaining in custody for over two years, an NGO following his case said. The east Cairo prosecution referred the case to State Security prosecutors, citing lack of jurisdiction, the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE) said in a statement posted on Facebook. Typically, State Security prosecutors look into cases that affect national security. Just a high-school student, Hussein, 20, has won over the sympathy of many because he was arrested while wearing a campaign shirt for an anti-torture group, called Nation Without Torture. He came to be known to many as the “anti-torture t-shirt” detainee. He has been in custody since January 25, 2014 and last month, the duration of his detention exceeded two years, which is the pre-trial detention limit set by Egyptian law. Two days after he completed two years in detention AFTE made a request to Egypt’s highest prosecutor, calling for Hussein’s release and saying that his preventive detention is void. Article 143 of the Code of Criminal Procedure states that no person may be held in custody pending…
‘Anti-Torture’ Detainee Referred to Egypt State Security Prosecution After Over 2 Years in Custody
February 18, 2016
