“We Record” Team urges the International Community and the United Nations Human Rights Council to take decisive steps towards launching an international investigation into the mass killings that occurred on August 14, 2013 in Egypt, most importantly in Rabia and al-Nahda Squares.

 

Taking into account that we are getting through the sixth remembrance of the most massive mass killings in the modern Egyptian history, which have been committed by mutual forces of the Egyptian Police and Military against peaceful protesters supportive to Mohamed Morsi, the late Egyptian President.

 

Memories of many victims and their families are still recalling the details of the Police and Military Forces targeting Rabia al-‘Adawiya and al-Nahda sit-ins by shooting random live bullets and setting fire to the two sit-ins. They used the most excessive force aiming to disperse the peaceful protesters who expressed their refusal of the dismissal procedures of Dr. Mohamed Morsi, Egypt’s first democratically elected civilian president. That day, mass killings led to the murder of hundreds of protesters, 21 of which were women whom we documented their names.

 

Our team has recorded many of the violations committed on that day. Further, our team has collected visual testimonies of the then Prime Minister Dr. Hazem al-Beblawy, who admitted that the dispersal decision was unanimously taken by the Council of Ministers. Moreover, he admitted that the final dispersal plan was approved by the Interim President Adly Mansour, the Minister of Defense Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, the Commander-in-Chief Sedky Sobhy, the Head of Military Intelligence Mahmoud Hegazy, the Director of the General Intelligence Service Mohamed Farid al-Tohamy, the Minister of Interior Mohamed Ibrahim, the Head of the National Security Service Khaled Tharwat, and the Major General Medhat al-Shennawy who was assigned to lead and supervise the killing operations.

 

The massacre ended by setting fire to Rabia Square including tents, the Mosque, and the field hospital. Additionally, military bulldozers intervened in an attempt to erase the signs of the massacre through holding the remnants left after the forces and transferring them to an unknown desert region under control of the Egyptian Military.

 

Up to now, no investigation has been launched into any of the killings committed on that day. Yet, the Egyptian authorities have enlisted the protesters who have been detained into a case on that day. Hence, victims have been converted into criminals and eyewitnesses into accused.

 

Six years have passed after that crime without any real accountability that avenges the victims and their relatives and punishes the criminals. Yet, Dr. Hazem al-Beblawy, one of those responsible for the incidents of that day because of his position as a Prime Minister then, is now working as a CEO at the IMF for a number of countries of the Middle East.

 

Last but not least, we do urge the International Community and the United Nations Human Rights Council to declare the 14thof August as an international day for victims of mass killings in the world. We urge them, moreover, to launch an international investigation into Rabia and al-Nahda Massacre as a victory for justice and international agreements that agreed upon the sacredness of human right to life.

 

We Record

Thursday, corresponding to August 14, 2019

Cairo, Egypt.