Egypt’s Interior Ministry has denied rumours surrounding the collective punishment of opposition detainees held in the notorious Scorpion Prison.
Speaking to MENA on condition of anonymity a prison official says despite frequent reports by international rights groups about the torment and abuse of prisoners, Egyptian authorities repeatedly deny the claims.
“Such claims are baseless and banned Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters seek to spread such rumours to destabilize public opinion,”
The deputy Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch Joe Stork says Egyptian security agencies completely deprive inmates of adequate ventilation, electricity and hot water.
“The Egyptian authorities are apparently imposing collective punishment on hundreds of inmates in Scorpion Prison, after cutting them off from the world for almost three years,”
Stork says since the military takeover in 2013, the Egyptian authorities, have used it to incarcerate many leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood as well as other high-profile political prisoners.
Scorpion Prison currently holds between 700 and 800 prisoners. There is a ban on family visits since March 2018 and, since early 2019, prisoners have been deprived of exercise hours, being confined to their cells for 24 hours every day.
By Yazdaan khan
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