Blogs against torture is a slogan raised by Egyptian blogs protesting torture and thus decided to expose every new video or picture of torture incidents they could get. This might be because some Egyptian bloggers were tortured in police stations or beaten and dragged along in the street. A large number of bloggers, whether being Muslim brothers or others, were arrested only to boost the popularity of their campaign. Some bloggers were detained after they had exposed torture clips or torture cases or held press conference where they unveiled that they were tortured in police stations or during their detention like the case of Abdel Moneim Mahmoud, a blogger and a journalist affiliated to the Muslim Brothers. He was detained anew after he wrote about the torture he faced during his arrest. This led to his detention again for about three months.
Another blog by Noha Atef about torture in Egypt . The blog is more than excellent as it consists of a large number of torture cases perpetrated by the police or elements having direct or indirect link to the Egyptian police. The blog has a large number of testimonies both old and new. What is unique about Noha"s blog is that she showed that torture in Egypt started long ago not lately as it seemed. The blog provides a large number of heinous torture cases by police men or elements affiliated to the Interior Ministry against citizens that took place 10 or 15 years ago. This has exposed the government and was considered a great embarrassment to it, if the government is ever to concern.
Noha"s blog has won other bloggers and rights groups interest. Each post Noha writes has no less than 1000 viewers. The number of a single post sometimes reaches 4000. The blog drew the state security anger as a number of state security officers threatened her father and Noha herself. She had to back down for some time and scale down the tone of her writings. She even stopped writing from some time to safeguard her family and father. Noha is back again to write about torture stories which could take volumes of violations if it took place in any state that respects itself or its people, the government would resign but smile you are in Egypt !
Betza or Kofta Blog
Magdy Saad, an ikhwan blogger, who faced horrible torture in a police station after he was arrested along with a number of his brotherhood friends. Magdy wrote "A first attempt to break the silence regarding practices of mean class of the society who subjugating the innocent by terror, torture and physical and psychological harm. Your role is to send your comment if you were subject to any of such violations and to encourage others not to keep silent". Magdy was subject to painful beating by a police officer during his detention to get his confession. He was subjected to electric shocks for a long time to the extent that his hair got burnt. He was tortured for seven consecutive hours. During interrogations, he was denied water and when he asked for water the police officer asked him to open his mouth to drink when he opened his mouth the officer put an electric rod into his mouth and triggered shock waves.
Magdy gave his blog this name because the police officer who tortured him used to ask him bitza or kofta. If he answers I do"not know he used to beat him if he answered kofta he hit him and when answered bitza he used to beat him as well in all cases he was beaten.
Yasar Sinai " to the left of Sinai" Blog
The blog is related to violations facing Sinai inhabitants. It is well known that Sinai people are among the most oppressed from the part of the state. They are suspected of spying for Israel despite the fact they are known to be a fortification wall protecting Egypt "s northeast. Sinai people are always subject to torture. Nobody knows the torture they are facing as their Bedouin nature considers such kind of violation an honour degradation that necessitates revenge. When they face suppression they could keep patient but there will come the time when they would revolt beyond all expectations.
The state is trying to evacuate the border line of their Egyptian inhabitants to build a 150-metre separation wall along the borders with Gaza . This means the end of Egyptian Rafah. When the inhabitants protested because they have no other place to go, thousands of Egyptian security soldiers attacked the protesters and barbarically pushed them out using tear gas leaving children suffocated. They even used life ammunition, which resulted in three serious injuries. When the inhabitants protested, the state response was extremely violent firing bullets, grenades and tear gas leaving Awad Mohamed Arafat, 17, killed and another infant, 5, dead of suffocation due to tear gas.
This came after they had confronted security forces and its barbarism despite the fact that they were peacefully protesting the confiscation of their lands and homes against a regime that wants to drive them out of their land to guarantee Israel "s security.
These blogs contributed to great extend in shedding light on torture issues which prevailed the Egyptian street at a time their owners are facing harassment of the Egyptian security which hates to see anyone exposing it to itself despite the fact that it does not care much for that.