Leaked torture videos: ‘Egypt is the republic of fear’
“Egypt is now the republic of fear”
Aly Hussin Mahdy, Egyptian activist
Illustration by Kit Lloyd
Shortly before the 11 year anniversary of the Day of Rage Egyptian activist living in the US, Aly Hussin Mahdy, sent me two videos which had been recorded inside Katameya Prison in Egypt. The videos are believed to have been filmed in 2021 and show inmates being tortured. In the footage, an inmate is blindfolded and lies face down on the floor with his hands tied to his legs behind his back, whilst others have wounds on their legs and backs.
On 1 February I took part in a podcast with Egyptian journalist Osama Gaweesh and Human Rights Watch’s Joe Stork to discuss the videos and the human rights crisis in Egypt.