May 21, 2019
Egypt’s top prosecutor has ordered the release of five prominent opposition figures who have been held since August, lawyers said on Monday.
The five, including former diplomat Masoum Marzouk, were detained after calling for a popular referendum on President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s government.
Lawyers Khalid Ali and Omar Eid confirmed the decision on Monday, and said their clients may be released “within hours”.
According to Ali, Marzouk’s lawyer, two other defendants in the case, Sameh Seoudi and Amr Mohamed, were not included in Monday’s decision.
The ruling has been issued pending further investigation, and the five have had a travel ban placed upon them, according to local media.
Ahram, a government-owned newspaper, quoted a security source as saying: “The decision came in response to human rights calls and appeals by families to release the defendants.”
Political prisoners
Marzouk, 73, has been detained in solitary confinement since August, when he publicly called for a referendum, the release of political prisoners, the formation of a transitional governing council to replace Sisi, and a ten-year ban on political candidacy for anyone who served in government or parliament over the past decade.
In March, Marzouk’s wife wrote an appeal to the public prosecutor, condemning her husband’s solitary confinement and warning that he was “dying in prison”.
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https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/egypt-prosecutor-orders-release-five-opposition-figures
http://www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/70641/Egypt%E2%80%99s-authorities-pardon-Masoum-Marzouk-6-others
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/hundreds-dead-egyptian-jails-2013
Nasrin Sotoudeh, avocate iranienne, est actuellement détenue à la prison d’Evin à Téhéran. Elle a été condamnée en mars dernier à une peine de 38 ans de prison et à 148 coups de bâton pour s’être notamment illustrée dans la défense des droits des femmes, dont celles qui refusaient de porter le hijab. Elle a aussi assuré la défense de journalistes et de militants politiques. Elle avait déjà reçu en 2012 le Prix Sakharov “pour la liberté de l’esprit” décerné par le Parlement européen, rappelle l’ordre dans un communiqué. Créé en 1984, le “Prix International des droits de l’Homme – Ludovic-Trarieux” est décerné à “un avocat sans distinction de nationalité ou de barreau, qui aura illustré par son œuvre, son activité ou ses souffrances, la défense du respect des droits de l’Homme, des droits de la défense, la suprématie du droit, la lutte contre les racismes et l’intolérance sous toutes leurs formes”, expliquent les organisateurs. Il est décerné par un jury composé de représentants de barreaux européens.
