Wife of detained Egyptian journalist raises alarm over his deteriorating health

The wife of a detained Egyptian journalist has raised the alarm about the media worker's life-threatening heart condition and called on Egypt’s media union to lobby for his release.

Iman Mahrous, the wife of Ahmed Subai, wrote a passionate plea on Facebook on Wednesday, calling for his freedom, saying the media worker's health was seriously deteriorating due to a lack of medical care by prison authorities.

According to Mahrous, despite requests from the union, there have been no reports provide on the tests carried out on Subai’s heart condition.

"If treatment is not available, release him and we will provide him with the treatment," she said.

In addition to the heart condition, Subai is no longer able to stand and suffers from a jaw issue, causing tooth erosion.

Subai was first arrested in 2013 over the Rabaa Al-Adawiya sit-in, with his pre-trial detention lasting four years. He was released in May 2017, but detained again by security forces in 2020.

In a previous post published on 2 May, Mahrous said her husband's maltreatment in prison was affecting the whole family.

"Ahmed was not ill and was not suffering from anything [before he was imprisoned], but his health deteriorated during his confinement," she said.

Mahrous can only speak to her husband once every two months for 25 minutes through a glass partition making the conversations, via a telephone line, inaudible.

Rights groups estimate tens of thousands of people have been detained for political dissent under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, including journalists, with systemic torture and life-threatening mistreatment said to be ride inside Egyptian jails.