West Alexandria prosecutors have received the file on the death of Sayed Belal, a Salafi Muslim man whose family has accused Egyptian security sevices of torturing him to death while investigating the New Year's Eve Alexandria church bombing.
Prosecutors ordered that Zqeilah medical center officials in Alexandria's Labban district be questioned on how Belal arrived at the hospital, his medical condition, and the features of the two men who brought him there. Prosecutors also called for an autopsy report to be issued to identify the cause of death, noting that abrasions were found on different parts of Belal’s body.
Hospital officials have told investigators that Belal, a 31-year-old petroleum company employee, was unconscious but not injured when he arrived to the hospital. Once conscious, they said, Belal spoke to his family before passing away. The cause of death was initially attributed to heart failure.
A source within the Alexandria prosecution said that Belal died as a result of heart failure at a private hospital, having been released from being held on suspicion of involvement in the church attack. The source denied that any torture had taken place.
Belal’s brother said a friend had told him Belal was transferred to hospital after he had been detained for days on suspicion of being involved in the church bombing. The friend of Belal’s brother was then summoned to be questioned.
A source close to Belal’s family said she received threats of detention from security apparatuses, who she did not identify, to force her to withdraw a complaint she had submitted to the general prosecutor, and prevent her from speaking to the media.
In related news, the Egyptian Organization for Human Rights (EOHR) expressed concern over the issue and called on the general prosecutor to immediately commence investigations. Hafez Abu Saeda, head of the EOHR, said there were "strong" suspicions that the death was caused by torture.
Sobhi Saleh, a Muslim Brotherhood leader, said the Brotherhood planned to send members to the family to offer support. He mentioned that the family was being pressed by security services to change their statements.
Khalaf Bayoumi, a Brotherhood lawyer in Alexandria, said Belal was a Salafi activist in Alexandria who had earlier taken part in protests demanding the release of Kamilia Shehata, a priest’s wife alleged to have converted to Islam.
Mohamed ElBaradei, former International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), called for investigating what he called "Belal’s murder" in detention.
"God bless Mr. Belal," said ElBaradei through his Twitter account. “We are awaiting the outcome of investigations. If proven to have been tortured, officials in charge must be strongly punished.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition
