Disappeared Alexandria Library employee interrogated under corona case

The head of translation in the publishing department at Alexandria Library has appeared at the State Security Prosecution building in east Cairo.

Kholoud Said, 35, was taken from her home shortly before midnight on 21 April after plain clothes security forces and uniformed, armed men, asked her to get dressed and accompany them to Al-Montazah Police Station.

The officers searched her room and took her laptop, mobile phone and several documents. The next day her brother was asked to bring her laptop charger to the National Security Agency’s headquarters in Alexandria where officials refused to say where his sister was being held, denying she was at Al-Montazah.

Human Rights Watch has reported that “vague and apparently abusive” charges have now been brought against Kholoud, including “joining a terrorist group” and “spreading false news”, under the “coronavirus case”.

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Lawyers have told the watchdog that a number of activists including Aya Kamal, Noha Kamal Ahmed and lawyers including Mohsen Bahnasy have been arrested and interrogated under this case. Social media activists have also been detained for criticising the government’s covid response.

Aya was arrested for allegedly inciting against the army for commenting on social media about the death of several army officers from coronavirus. Noha and Mohsen had both called on authorities to reduce the number of prisoners in Egyptian jails over concerns of a virus outbreak.

Inmates are seen inside an Egyptian prison on 19 November 2019 [MOHAMED EL-SHAHED/AFP/Images]

Activists and rights groups have been calling on the government to release prisoners who are notoriously held in overcrowded, unhygienic prison cells with little access to medicine or medical care, which will be a fertile breeding ground for COVID-19 when it hits the prisons.

The government released 4,000 prisoners for Sinai Liberation Day, which has been interpreted as a sign it bowed to this pressure, despite the fact it made no official comment that coronavirus was the reason. Political prisoners were not released.

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Earlier this month authorities detained seven children who were held under the coronavirus case, then later released them, according to the Baladi Centre for Rights and Freedoms.

A lawyer who attended Kholoud’s interrogation said the prosecutor asked her about a series of posts on her Facebook account in which she shared articles criticising the government. Her mother has previously said that Kholoud is not politically active.