Horrifying report from lawyers of Egyptian journalist Solafa Magdy.
On Nov 29, Solafa was blindfolded & taken from her cell to another room where a man asked her to become an informant. She refused. He threatened her, telling her she would not see her son again. He harassed her.
Later on Jan 19, when Egyptian journalist Solafa Magdy was being transferred to her renewal hearing, she was made to undergo further abuse.
She was forced to entirely strip for an alleged search. She was later physically dragged to the police van for transfer.
When family visited Solafa on Jan 27, she was severely fatigued & had to be supported on both sides by fellow detainees. She told her mom she was undergoing severe bleeding.
At an earlier point, she had been made to undergo a forced exam of her uterus, resulting in bleeding.
Egyptian journalist Solafa Magdy was arrested 432 days ago, on November 26, 2019, alongside her husband journalist Hossam al-Sayyad. They were ripped apart from their young son Khaled.
Solafa is in pretrial detention pending two separate cases.
As Lebanon's UPR closes, was promising to see many states raise press freedom, freedom of expression more broadly, and related issues like defamation prosecutions & attacks on journalists. #UPR37
Context on why this matters in @TimepDC & @CPJMENA's UPR resources in this 🧵.
At Lebanon's #UPR37: Thank you @usmissiongeneva for calling for a stop to the prosecution of journalists; @UKMissionGeneva for calling for repeal of defamation provisions; @geneva_korea for calling for safety of journalists; @NLinGeneva for calling to uphold press freedom.
THREAD: (1) Female thugs attacked, beat & robbed the family of Egyptian activist Alaa Abdel Fattah as they sat outside of Tora Prison WHILE officers watched, did nothing & at one point--when they were seeking protection near the prison gates--told the thugs "take them outside."
(2) On the watch of authorities, the thugs hit Alaa's youngest sister Sanaa on the head & the back with a shoum (large stick). His other sister Mona was dragged on the ground. His mom Dr. Laila Soueif was hit and pushed. The thugs stole their bags, IDs, money, everything on them.
(3) See @Monasosh's timeline for the full account of these horrific accounts in Arabic, as well as photo documentation of the injuries Alaa's family sustained.
Today, Assad called on refugees to return because Syria is "in need of all of its children" enabbaladi.net/archives/282494
Statements like this, though, don't match up with the reality on the ground. At @TimepDC, we've been tracking the laws that make a safe return for many impossible.
Syria's counter-terrorism law, for example, employs a vague definition of terrorism that has been used to arrest those who dissent peacefully against the regime, to try and sentence them as terrorists, and to confiscate their assets. timep.org/reports-briefi… via @TimepDC
Syrians are increasingly being stopped at checkpoints and rounded up for military service. Although Assad issued Decree 18 which allegedly grants amnesty to military deserters & draft dodgers, reports of conscription continue timep.org/reports-briefi… via @TimepDC