African Union calls on Egypt to spare Muslim Brotherhood chief

The African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) has issued a recommendation to the Egyptian government to take all necessary measures to stop the execution of the Muslim Brotherhood’s General Guide Mohamed Badie in accordance with several articles of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights, to which Egypt is committed.

The recommendation letter said that Badie was arrested after he filed a formal complaint against the killing of his son Ammar in the wake of protests in Egypt on 16 August, 2013 by government troops. Following his filing of the formal complaint against the Egyptian authorities, Badie himself was arrested, tortured and detained.

The ACHPR said Egypt must submit a report on measures taken in this regard within 15 days, otherwise the violation will be included in the organisation’s report to the African Union to be discussed in its next session.

The European Alliance for Human Rights submitted a request to the ACHPR which stated that “Badie did not get a fair trial in which the minimum of international standards of criminal justice were upheld, which led to Badie being accused or convicted in 34 separate cases.”

Badie was sentenced to three death sentences and is being tried in more than 40 cases, including three military cases.