Rabat – Among the thousands of cases of political imprisonment in post-coup Egypt, the tragic story of one young Egyptian man has shocked the world.
The story of Muhanad Ehab was featured in Sharq TV channel’s program With Moataz presented by the prominent Egyptian TV anchor Moataz Matar.
The nineteen-year-old recounts how Egyptian authorities arrested him and how he contracted an up blood-borne disease while imprisoned.
Muhanad recounted his terrifying symptoms, which he faced while the prison officers completely ignored his continuous request to be examined by a doctor:
“It was in the beginning of May. After lunch, I vomited what I ate. I ate again but I vomited a second time, yet I thought it was normal. The next day in breakfast, I realized that my body completely rejected food. Starting from the fifth day, fever appeared. I asked the people in charge let me to be examined but they refused. After three weeks, they finally accepted,” said Ehab.
By this time, Ehab had lost 25 kilos and his symptoms gradually developed into a full-fledged disease as he waited for the officers to allow him to visit a doctor.
“Fever continued, no matter what I did, said Ehab.
“I couldn’t pray or even go to the toilet, I used to cry in the toilet … even when I wanted to change position while sleeping, I had to have someone sleeping next to me to help me.”
When Muhanad finally saw a doctor, he was hoping to get a diagnosis. But each time they told him he had a different disease.
“They didn’t even examine me, the doctor would look at me, and tell me I had this or that disease.”
The administration of the prison disregarded the unceasing requests of Muhanad’s family to give him a blood test. When they finally accepted, Muhanad had his blood taken to a clinical laboratory but there was not enough blood in the vial to get a proper diagnosis for his disease.
Finally, when the white blood cell count reached 93 percent, he was allowed to go to a hospital. All the time handcuffed, Muhanad waited several days for an available bed.
Muhanad learned the serious nature of his sickness when an attorney told the judge in front of him that he had been diagnosed with Leukemia. When the judge ordered his release, he was not freed until after 18 days.
“The doctors knew I had Leukemia, but they did not tell me […] I underwent chemotherapy and I didn’t know it was chemotherapy.”
Muhanad Ehab’s story has drawn both sympathy and rage among many Egyptians. A hashtag under his name in Arabic is trending on Facebook and Twitter with thousands of people praying for him and cursing the violations of human rights in post-coup Egypt.
