33 political prisoners held in remand released on Monday

Thirty-three people were released from remand detention on Monday, including businessperson and economic expert Omar Sheneity, lawyer Youssef Mansour, and April 6 Youth Movement member Ahmed Hassanein.

An accelerated process to release some of the thousands of prisoners held without trial began in 2022, after the president announced the National Dialogue. Some convicted prisoners have also been granted presidential pardon and released early.

Sheneity, detained in June 2019, and Mansour, detained in March 2022 were both imprisoned by orders from the State Security Prosecution pending charges of “spreading false news and joining a terrorist organization.”

Sheneity was the final detainee still held following June 2019 arrests targeting the Coalition for Hope, an opposition alliance that was planning to field candidates in the 2020 parliamentary elections. The case also included journalist Hossam Moanis, former MP Zyad Elelaimy and journalist Hesham Fouad. 

In August 2017, prior to Sheneity’s arrest, the judicial committee formed to freeze and manage assets belonging to designated terrorist organizations, mostly targeted at the Muslim Brotherhood, took over a company owned by Sheneity — the Arab International Company for Commercial Agencies, which runs the Alef bookstore chain.

As for Mansour, the prosecution directed false news and terrorism charges at the lawyer after he posted a request on his Facebook page to visit his client, Mohamed “Oxygen” Ibrahim, the blogger imprisoned since September 2019, and to allow Oxygen's family to visit him in Aqrab Prison.

Mada Masr asked Zahran and defense lawyer Khaled Ali how the 33 detainees were granted release orders.

“Zahran asked me to prepare a list of political prisoners’ and detainees’ names to call for their release days ago,” said Ali.

Zahran, speaking to Mada Masr on his way to Abu Zaabal Prison to receive Sheneity after his release, attributed the releases to the efforts of the Civil Democratic Movement, of which his party is a member, to amplify pressure for releases and their work to present the names of detainees who have not yet been released to authorities.

“The Civil Democratic Movement agreed to participate in the National Dialogue only on condition that political prisoners would be released,” Zahran told Mada Masr.

Nonetheless, two political sources who previously spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity noted that releases since the launch of the National Dialogue can be viewed as "merely a move to contain the political sphere and public opinion ahead of the expected economic crisis and huge spikes in prices."

The releases are also a step by authorities to prepare for new political leaders and cadres before the 2024 presidential elections, said one of the two political sources.

Egypt has also been under diplomatic pressure to accelerate prisoner releases. The US Senate blocked in October last year the release of US$75 million out of the $1.3 billion that the State Department provides in military aid to Egypt on an annual basis, citing concerns about Egypt's human rights record, including political prisoners. The European Parliament has also taken official steps to register its objections to rights violations in Egypt.