Scorpion Prison

The Al-Aqrab Prison (Arabic: سجن العقرب‎, lit. 'The Scorpion Prison'; official name Tora Prison 992 Maximum-Security) is a notorious torture prison in Helwan, Egypt, south of Cairo. It is used for political prisoners and opponents of the Egyptian government, who include Muslim Brotherhood and April 6 Youth Movement leaders, as well as political activists. Inmates allegedly suffer from ill-treatment and shortages of food.[1][2] The prison was built in 1993 under Interior Minister Habib El-Adly,[3] and is part of the Tora Prison complex.[4]

Al-Aqrab has about 320 cells that house approximately 2,000 inmates.[5]

Speaking of al-Aqrab, Colonel Omar Afifi stated:

Al-Aqrab prison was designed so that the sunlight never enters any of its cells during the day. As a result, inmates develop diseases due to the lack of vitamin D, whose scarcity leads to weakness in the mind and in the body. The prison also suffers from lack of ventilation. During summer, temperatures within it rise to unbearable levels, while in winter it turns into a freezer.[6]

The prison became known during the military rule of dictator Hosni Mubarak.[7]

Notable inmates

References
  1. "Egypt's Akrab prison tightens grip on inmates". Middle East Monitor. 2016-12-08. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
  2. "The graveyard: An inside look into Alaqrab Prison: The beginnings of Alaqrab Prison".
  3. "Egypt--Ministry-denies-worsening-conditions-in-Al-Aqrab-Prison". www.menafn.com.
  4. "Egypt: Senior Muslim Brotherhood politician Essam el-Erian dies in prison". Middle East Eye. 13 August 2020.
  5. "Egypt: Generation of young activists imprisoned in ruthless bid to crush dissent". www.amnesty.org.
  6. "Al-Aqrab: the Egyptian prison with carcinogenic Asbestos and fatal diseases". Middle East Monitor. 2016-12-13. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
  7. "StackPath". www.dailynewsegypt.com.
  8. "Detention Review Panel". Detention Review Panel. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  9. "UN calls for 'prompt and thorough' probe into Morsi's death". www.aljazeera.com.
  10. Elsayed Gamal Eldeen (2013-12-21). "Senior Morsi aides transferred to Cairo prison charges yet to be filed". Ahram English. Retrieved 2016-08-07.
  11. "Jailed Brotherhood spokesman disciplined for New York Times article". Middle East Monitor. February 28, 2017.
  12. "Egypt: End Gehad el-Haddad`s solitary confinement and denial of medical care". Amnesty International Canada. May 28, 2018.
  13. "Gehad transferred to Scorpion Prison". FreeHaddad.org. January 26, 2014.
  14. "Journalist Mohamed Fahmy details 'grim' imprisonment in new memoir". CBC News. November 21, 2016.
  15. "Stephen Harper, Khaled Al-Qazzaz needs your help". Toronto Star. July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2015.

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