Egypt writer calls on Sisi to release political detainees

Egyptian writer and journalist Gamal Sultan has called on Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to release all the political detainees following a recent pardon for Ethiopian prisoners.

“Should we ask each political prisoner to swear that he won’t harm Egypt’s interests in the future in order to release them like the Ethiopian Prime Minister?” Sultan, the chief editor of the Egyptian independent newspaper Al-Mesryoon, asked on Twitter.

On Monday, Egypt released 32 Ethiopian prisoners during a visit by the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, in which he sought to assure Cairo that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam would not cut into Egypt’s share of Nile waters.

“We will take care of the Nile and we will preserve your share and we will work to increase this quota and President Sisi and I will work on this,” Ahmed said, addressing Egyptians.

According to official statistics, around 40,000-60,000 people have been arrested in Egypt since 2013.

Local and international human rights groups accuse the Egyptian authorities of carrying out anti human rights activities, including forced disappearances, arbitrary arrests and unlawful detentions of thousands of dissidents. Egypt has consistently denied the accusations.

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