Rights group warn of detainee Hassan Mubarak’s health condition

Rights groups issued a statement warning about detainee Hassan Mubarak’s deteriorating health condition on Wednesday. Mubarak has been detained at the Bulaq al-Dakrour police station since late last month, pending investigations on charges of belonging to the April 6 Youth Movement.

The statement was issued by a number of rights groups, including the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), the Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI), Nazra for Feminist Studies, the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), among others.

According to the statement, Mubarak was moved from intensive care back to his former place of detention, and was not allowed to remain in hospital. Mubarak’s condition had allegedly worsened as a result of overcrowding in his jail cell and secondhand smoking.

He was initially moved to the Bulaq al-Dakrour hospital, where he received emergency medical care, and was transferred back to detention shortly after. Mubarak then collapsed and was moved to hospital for a second time, this time to intensive care.

63-year-old Mubarak, who is the brother of prominent rights lawyer Emad Mubarak, was arrested on May 30, when security forces raided his home. He is also facing charges of violating copyright laws in relation to the printing of a number of publications.

ANHRI had issued a statement when he was arrested, deeming his arrest a violation of human rights, as well as freedom of expression and calling for his release.