Shady Mohamed’s Life is in Danger… and the Regime is Responsible

Statement by Revolutionary Socialists

The Zionist occupation has released Palestinian prisoners, yet the regime refuses to release Egyptian detainees who expressed solidarity with Palestine. Dozens remained imprisoned since October 20 of the year before last, including those charged in Case No. 1644/2024 for simply hanging a banner in solidarity with Gaza.

Recently, the regime escalated its repression against one of the detainees accused of hanging the “Gaza solidarity banner”—the leftist labor leader Shady Mohamed. Authorities decided to transfer him from his detention in the 10th of Ramadan Prison 6 to Borg El Arab 2 Prison, denying him the right to take his personal belongings. He was placed in the intake ward of the new prison—an overcrowded and inhumane section. In response to this mistreatment, Shady began a hunger strike on the first day of his transfer, January 29.

Shady has a long history of struggle. He is a founding member of the Permanent Conference of Alexandria Workers and the Popular Committee for Supporting the Palestinian People. He also played a role in establishing the independent union for workers at Lenin Group Textiles.

Previously, he was arrested in 2023 for demanding workers’ rights and was dismissed from his job following a labor strike.

The Revolutionary Socialists demanded the release of all political detainees, including those imprisoned, for expressing solidarity with Palestine. At the very least, this would serve as proof of the regime’s sincerity in its alleged stance against the Zionist-American plan to forcibly displace Palestinians to Egypt and liquidate the Palestinian cause. Otherwise, these claims of alignment with the Palestinian struggle will merely serve as a tool to pacify public anger over worsening economic and social conditions while facilitating the displacement plan—without holding the regime accountable for safeguarding Egyptian sovereignty.

The movement reaffirms its full solidarity with Shady, his fellow detainees, and all political prisoners. It calls on the Attorney General to intervene immediately to stop the abuses against him, investigate the reasons behind his hunger strike, and save his life. Otherwise, the state will bear full responsibility for the loss of a prisoner of conscience. It is inconceivable that all state institutions remain indifferent to the violations faced by political detainees while only mobilizing to arrest more people and fabricate charges against them.