Family Statement After Seeing Alaa in Prison, November 17th 2022

We saw Alaa today for the first time since October 24th. We knew that on November 1st, he was going to drop the 100 calories that had been keeping him alive for over six months. 

When we saw him today, he was exhausted, weak and vulnerable. He was very, very thin.

We knew that on November 6th, the first day of the COP27 conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, he was going to stop drinking water. 

Beyond that, we knew almost nothing about what has happened to him inside prison, except for two short notes that we received from him on Monday and Tuesday this week. 

We saw him in the visitation booth of Wadi El Natrun prison, with a glass barrier between us, with one very faint headset that we could talk to him through one at a time. 

Just as we had no idea what was happening inside the prison, Alaa had almost no conception of what’s been going on outside it. 

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On Sunday 6th, Alaa stopped drinking water.

On Tuesday 8th, all cell inmates were ordered to the Medical Centre for a “routine examination”. This was unusual so it was not routine.

They were pressuring Alaa to submit to a medical examination so that they could produce a medical report. He said if it was officially put on record that he was admitted to the Medical Centre and that he was on hunger and water strike, then he would submit to a medical.

They instead brought plainclothes officers to intimidate him, but he refused to leave the Medical Centre, so a riot squad was brought in to carry him out. As he was being carried out he “lost it”, had a meltdown and promised to kill himself if he was taken back to the cell. When they put him in the cell he started to smash his head against the wall. He was restrained and tied down. The cell was put on suicide watch. 

On Wednesday 9th November Alaa smashed his own head against his cell wall, to force the authorities to file an official report on his case and bring in an investigator. He did so repeatedly until he drew blood.

On Thursday 10th November the Public Prosecutor sent someone qualitatively different to anyone he’d met before to interview him. He recorded the demands of the hunger strike and what had pushed him to it. Alaa’s spoke about his previous experience in Tora Maximum Security Prison to the man, and talked about the effect of living with no music, books or time outside of his cell for three years.  

On the same day Laila [Alaa’s mother] was not allowed to wait at the prison gates, and her letter to Alaa was refused by prison authorities. Alaa’s lawyer was also denied access to the prison despite having a permit. 

On Friday 11th, Alaa moved around a lot, tidied up his things and went to have a shower. In the shower he collapsed. For a while he lay on the floor, not sure what was happening, then waited to dry so he could put some underwear on and call for help. He tried to dress, and fell over and this time he fell unconscious. When he came to, he was surrounded by people and his head was cradled by one of his cellmates and there was a canula in his body which gave him a lactate solution and glucose. Then they gave him electrolyte fluid, a spoonful of honey and a pickle. There were lots of people there and they needed to save his life. He talked about all of this as a near-death experience.

This is how the hunger strike was broken.

At that point Alaa’s blood pressure was way down (110/50) and his sugar level was 41. He says he could see then that his wish for the end was getting the better of him. That there was a strong part of him that was ready to die. 

He also recognized that this was partly to do with his physical weakness, and so he had to fight it. 

He had thought that he would go straight back to hunger strike, but he decided not to, to give his body a small break, to give his cellmates a small break - he could see the effect his ordeal was having on them. He would gather a little strength and wait until the day came for the family visit. 

On Saturday 12th he wrote the short letter saying he’s drinking water again and asking for the music player. 

On Monday 14th, he began to eat of his own will again. They released the letter to us on this day. They allowed in the music player and Alaa heard music for the first time in 3 years. He felt alive again.

And today we saw him. He was very thin, very frail, but was happy to be back with his family for a moment. 

There have been no negotiations with the authorities, and no promises have been made. 

He has been completely in the dark as to what’s happening in the world outside. 

We tried to tell him about as much as we could of the global wave of solidarity we’ve been witnessing. Alaa said “Any form of political organizing that may solve our global crises has to stem from personal solidarity. Like this.”

We hope that the incredible global attention on Alaa’s case and the tens of thousands of people who are now standing by him will lead to his release. Alaa came close to death inside, but decided to reach for life. He will have no choice but to resume his hunger strike imminently if there continues to be no real movement on his case. 

So, that is everything that has happened in the last ten days. 

I know we were all hoping for different news. And so the campaign for Alaa’s release will continue with all the same strength for him. He needs it now more than ever.