The Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression have filed a lawsuit against the Egyptian prison authority asking them to allow the journalist and political activist Hassan Al-Banna’s family to send preventive health supplies and personal hygiene tools for protection from infection with the coronavirus, inside the prison. The foundation also asked that Al-Banna’s family be informed of all the preventive measures taken by the prison authority to prevent the spread of the virus inside prisons and enable them to communicate with him using alternative means. The organisation called for release of Al-Banna after he has spent two years in pretrial detention. Over the past several weeks families of detainees have complained that prison authorities have refused to allow preventive health supplies and personal hygiene tools to enter prisons.

The National Council for Human Rights called on the Ministry of Interior to provide alternative means of communication between prisoners and their families after extending the decision to stop visitsnThe council affirmed the necessity of providing personal hygiene and protective tools for prisoners, and called for the release of elderly detainees and those with chronic diseases, as part of the precautionary measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus.