Amnesty International has called for an investigation into claims that supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsy are torturing their opponents at two sit-ins in Giza's al-Nahda Square and Rabea al-Adaweya in eastern Cairo.
“Evidence, including testimonies from survivors, indicates that supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsy tortured individuals from a rival political camp,” a report by the organization said on Friday.
“Anti-Morsi protesters told Amnesty International how they were captured, beaten, subjected to electric shocks or stabbed by individuals loyal to the former President. Since mass rival rallies began in late June, as of 28 July, eight bodies have arrived at the morgue in Cairo bearing signs of torture. At least five of these were found near areas where pro-Morsi sit-ins were being held," the rights group said.
“Allegations that torture is being carried out by individuals are extremely serious and must be investigated as a matter of urgency,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. She urged politicians to urge their supporters to renounce violence and said citizens should not take the law into their own hands.
The report included accounts of some of the alleged victims of torture by Morsy’s backers.
“Mastour Mohamed Sayed, 21, told Amnesty International he and a group of 20 others were attacked by a group of Morsi supporters near the pro-Morsy sit-in at Rabea al-Adaweya on 5 July. His assailants wore balaclavas and some were armed with knives or machine guns. Some escaped but Mastour Mohamed Sayed and a few others were captured.”
Sayed told Amnesty International he “ felt terrorized by the guns pointed at me…They grabbed me…They called us ‘infidels’….We were then driven to the sit-in… I was dragged on the ground. We were eventually held under a podium…I was beaten with bars, and given electric shocks. I lost consciousness a few times.”
