Authorities release 2 Ghazl al-Mahalla workers detained during strike, ‘t-shirt detainee’

Two factory workers at Ghazl al-Mahalla, a publically-owned mega spinning and weaving factory, were ordered released on Sunday by the Supreme State Security Prosecution, according to a statement published by the Center for Trade Union and Workers Services (CTUWS). 

Security authorities also released Mahmoud Mohamed Hussein, a detainee who was initially arrested for wearing a t-shirt bearing the words “a nation without torture” on Sunday, lawyer Khaled Ali said, over a month after the Cairo Criminal Court decided to release him. 

Hussein was first arrested on January 25, 2014, when he was also wearing a scarf printed with "Jan 25." He was held in prison for two years without charges at the time, and was arrested again on suspicion of charges in the same case in 2023.

Wael Mohamed Abu Zaid and Mohamed Mahmoud Tolba were arrested in February when workers at the company went on strike to demand that their daily meal allowance be increased and for higher wages to be implemented, pointing to a recent wage increase for the public sector based on instructions by the President amid an inflationary wave that pushed up the cost of living nationwide.

The prosecution subsequently investigated them on suspicion of joining an illegal organization and spreading false news and held them in detention as the investigation was ongoing.

“The state security issued 42 release decisions over the past three days” which included Abu Zaid and Tolba, lawyer Hoda Abdelwahab told Mada Masr, noting that some of the decisions were implemented and the rest are awaiting release pending official procedures. 

The lawyer pointed out that the prosecution’s release decision included a number of detainees who’s status remained pending from relatively old cases, dating back to the years 2020 and 2021, in addition to some of those detained in connection with the November 11, 2022 demonstrations. 

Abdelwahab said the releases were a positive indicator and a probable reconsideration of the state’s position in these cases, though she noted that the state security releases did not include any of those detained in a series of security responses to individuals showing support for the Palestinian cause since October 7. 

As for Hussain, he was granted release on April 23 by the Cairo Criminal Court. Despite paying bail the day after the release order, authorities delayed in implementing the court order until Sunday.