The Egyptian rights group Al-Nadeem Center stated that it has documented extrajudicial killings by security forces based on print, online and social media reports.
Al-Nadeem Center said that the extrajudicial killings have reached 754 people killed so far during this year. In 2015, there were 326 such killings, according to al-Nadeem. In this context, al-Nadeem Center called in a statement for “justice” for what it described as “crimes” of the state.
One of al-Nadeem co-founders, the psychiatrist Aida Seif el-Dawla, said that “most of the killings were from shootings or airstrikes” that took place in the turmoil of the Sinai Peninsula, where security forces have been fighting a powerful local affiliate of the Islamic State group known as Sinai Province.
Since al-Sisi’s military coup in 2013 that ousted the first democratically elected president Mohamed Morsi, the Egyptian regime witnessed harsh suppression to the political opponents and a crackdown on human rights organizations. Moreover, Security forces have arrested thousands of Islamists and killed hundreds while dispersing protests. The campaign has also increasingly targeted secular activists who criticized the al-Sisi rule. The Egyptian Authorities had ordered the closure of the Nadeem Center, but it is still operating as it contests the order in court, with a hearing scheduled for July 10.
The authorities have always denied the accusations by local and human rights groups about the widespread torture in detention, prisons, and police stations, saying that there are only isolated incidents. The authorities argue that they are acting strictly to maintain stability and fight terrorism.
