The Shubra Al-Khaima prosecution rejected on Monday an appeal filed by rights lawyer Malek Adly and two others. Their detention will therefore continue over charges of inciting anti-government protests among others.
Laywer Sameh Samir said that Adly’s defence had not filed an appeal for him; however, the prosecution scheduled an appeal session without informing the lawyers.
“Adly’s fellow detainee, Ahmed Salem, filed an appeal and his session was on Monday. We confirmed to the prosecution that we would not be appealing now but they took him in anyway,” Samir added. During the session, the defence demanded Adly’s release based on the absence of legal reasons for his detention.
Head of the Lawyers Syndicate Sameh Ashour said in a statement on Sunday that the syndicate will file a memorandum to the public prosecutor demanding necessary medical examinations for Adly according to the law.
According to state-owned Al-Ahram, Ashour said the memorandum will include a request for a delegation from the syndicate to visit Adly. Ashour asserted several times that the syndicate would legally support any lawyer detained for expressing their opinion.
Adly was arrested earlier in May and faces charges of attempting to topple the regime, amending the constitution of the state, joining an entity that works against the government, and spreading false news pertaining to the maritime demarcation deal between Egypt and Saudi Arabia over the Red Sea islands.
Several local and international organisations have called on the Egyptian government to immediately release Adly and drop all charges against him.
The violations against Adly began following his arrest, according to his wife Asmaa Aly. She said that despite the many complaints that have been filed, Adly continues to face “inhumane” conditions in prison and is not allowed out of his cell, except when he is summoned to have his detention renewed. Aly also added that deliberate arbitrariness against him is continued by the prison administration.
Adly has been an active defender of human rights since 2008. He is a co-founder of the Front of Defence for Egyptian Protesters (FDEP). Adly currently works as the head of the lawyers’ network at the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) and is a member of the Freedoms Committee at the Egyptian Social Democratic Party (ESDP).
