Karima Amin Abd El-Hamid Amin Al-Seirafe

Name: Karima Amin Abd El-Hamid Amin Al-Seirafe
Gender: Female
Age at time of arrest: 20
Occupation: Shari'a and Law Student, Al-Azhar university, 2nd year
Governorate of residence: Cairo
Arrest governorate: Cairo
Detention date: 29/3/2014
Cases: No. 10154 for 2014, October second felonies, registered under No. 3690 for 2014, south of Al-Jiza, total and registered under No. 315 for 2014, the Supreme State Security
Sentences: 30 years aggravated imprisonment in absentia

Karima Amin was arrested in her home on 3/29/2014. She says about the circumstances of her arrest: “It was 8:30pm when I was receiving a phone call, and I was surprised by the frightening sounds of people trying to break the apartment’s door. The door fell, and I was surprised by a number of masked men filling the apartment. They shouted: “Freeze.freeze where you are,” and they pointed their weapons at me. They searched the apartment and found that it was similar to a military barracks. I retreated to the entrance of my room because I was in house clothes, and I closed the door to my room. I tried to argue with the military officer that I am a girl by myself and I didn’t have anything to cover my hair with. But they didn’t answer and they tried to break the door. I put the prayer rug on my head and went out. I was surprised by the size of the forces that blocked every apartment in the building and prevented residents from exiting or entering.
They spent 4 hours inspecting everything in the apartment, and they took every paper, even the supermarket receipt, for the case. They blindfolded me and took me somewhere unknown. Then I was surprised to find that I was in the State Security Headquarters in the city of Nasr.” She disappeared for 3 days before the general prosecutor issued a decision to imprison her for 15 days on 4/1/2014, under an espionage case with Qatar. She was placed in Al Qanatir prison and remained there until she was released on 8/18/2014 and was placed on mandatory house arrest and would need to come to the new Cairo Police Station daily for 45 days beginning from 9am to 5pm. She was sentenced to prison in absentia on 6/18/2016 for 15 years, which was assigned to her by 2 articles, 5 and 8, and to strict prison for 15 years, which was assigned to her by article 10 from the description of the accusation, and the acquittal which was assigned to her by the first article from the referral order. The accused is required to pay the expenses and confiscate all the seized items at the disposal of the General Intelligence. It is reported that she is currently a fugitive out of the country.
Violations she was subjected to: she was taken to an unknown location for 3 days – not allowed to have a lawyer with her in the investigations – she and all the female prisoners in Al Qanatir were subject to severe beatings which led to her being injured with bruises and others having fractures.