Egyptian researcher and master’s student Ahmed Samir Santawy went on hunger strike on 23 June after an emergency court sentenced him to four years’ imprisonment for publishing “false news”. His conviction is based solely on social media posts criticizing human rights violations in Egypt and the state’s mishandling of the pandemic. Verdicts by emergency courts cannot be appealed and are only subject to the president’s authorization. Ahmed Samir Santawy is a prisoner of conscience who must be immediately and unconditionally released.
