"‘Cairo Guantanamo’: Suicides and Hunger Strike at Badr 3 Prison – Sector (2)"

🔴 "Cairo's Guantanamo".. Suicides and Hunger Strike Inside Badr 3 Prison – Sector (2)

📌 Al-Shehab Human Rights Center

The Al-Shehab Human Rights Center has monitored a series of serious violations inside Sector (2) of Badr 3 Prison during the first half of August 2025, where health and humanitarian conditions have severely deteriorated, amid an ongoing hunger strike and repeated suicide attempts among detainees.

🔹 Repeated Suicide Attempts:

On August 3, surgeon Sayyid Haikal attempted suicide inside his cell.

The following day, August 4, both Amin Al-Sayrafi and Khaled Saeed Morsi (the late President Mohamed Morsi's nephew), along with Dr. Abdullah Shahata, attempted suicide.

On August 6, engineer As'ad Al-Sheikha swallowed a large quantity of medication all at once after a dispute with National Security officers (Marwan Hamad, Ahmed Fikri) and Major General Mohamed Labib, which led to him entering a critical health condition.

On August 8, Dr. Mohamed Al-Beltagi lost consciousness and collapsed, amid uncertainty regarding his health status.

Dr. Ahmed Aref was also transferred to the clinic due to severe deterioration in his health as a result of the hunger strike, refusing to end his strike unless a human rights committee visited him.

By August 10, the number of detainees who attempted suicide had reached 16, including those who repeated the attempt multiple times, notably: Khalil Al-Aqid, Mohamed Abu Huraira, Hani Shaaban.

Later, Khalil Al-Aqid made another attempt by violently cutting the veins in his hand, requiring surgical stitching of 36 stitches, after which he was transferred to disciplinary confinement instead of receiving necessary medical care.

🔹 Violations and Arbitrary Measures:

On August 11, a committee from the Prisons Authority conducted a comprehensive "raid" inside the sector, confiscating all belongings from the cells.

National Security officer Marwan Hamad informed the detainees that there were "instructions from the presidency not to transfer any critical cases to the medical center, to prevent news leaks to the media," emphasizing that the sector's file is under the direct supervision of the presidency.

The same officer threatened detainee Mohamed Abu Huraira with "exile" to New Valley Prison, telling him verbatim: "You might die there, and no one will know anything about you."

🔹 Continuous Health Deterioration:

The health condition of each of the following has deteriorated: Basem Awda, Khaled Al-Azhari, Mohamed Saad Aliwa, Osama Yassin, As'ad Al-Sheikha, Amin Al-Sayrafi.

Dr. Mohamed Al-Beltagi suffered a serious health crisis that required his transfer to Al-Munira Hospital and then to the prison hospital, where his condition stabilized temporarily.

Professor Ayman Al-Sayrafi is also suffering from severe deterioration in his health, in addition to facing threats concerning his family inside and outside Egypt.

🔹 Current Situation:

Since August 12, detainees in Sector (2) have been living in complete isolation after the change of the responsible officers and guards, with a continued total lockdown of the sector. So far, 21 detainees continue their hunger strike amid escalating violations and deprivation of medical care.

The Al-Shehab Center affirms that what is happening in Badr 3 Prison – Sector (2) represents a direct threat to the lives of the detainees and a blatant violation of their most basic human and legal rights, calling for an urgent investigation and enabling independent human rights committees to visit the prison and assess the conditions of the detainees.

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