This statement is issued by the #free_Ola_and_Hosam campaign, and by Mrs. Ola Yousef Al-Qaradawi’s and Engr. Hossam Ali Khalaf’s Families, to the general public and to whomever may be interested After the prosecution insisted on Wednesday, 12 July 2017 to renew their imprisonment.
First, in response to the fabricated stories released by the media that lacks truth and professionalism, we would like to give the details of the story just as it happened.
They were arrested at 10 pm on Friday, June 30, 2017, while they were spending the Eid al-Fitr holiday in the northern coast of Egypt. They were staying in the chalet, owned by Ola’s late mother Umm Muhammad, in Ramses resort where they usually spend holidays and special occasions. They got arrested during transferring some furniture from the aforementioned chalet. Everyone was surprised to see security forces storming the resort and preventing the transfer of the furniture on the pretext that this chalet belongs to Sheikh Al-Qaradawi whose properties have been confiscated by the state.
However, the chalet is actually owned by his wife as mentioned above. Nevertheless, the transfer would have been from a place owned by the deceased to another property that she also owned. Therefore, regardless of the validity of the confiscation in the first place, there was no form of “disposition” of the property, by sale or donation, which is prohibited by law. Actually, we are surprised by the swift emergence of the police, claiming they were present to apply the law, while the organized crimes that are destroying the society and filling the Egyptian streets are left unattended.
Nonetheless, whether this situation has happened by a slander, a false accusation or as a result of the recent political tensions between Egypt and Qatar (since Mrs. Ola is a Qatari citizen), it has nothing to do with what they have been charged with later, such as joining an illegal organization and financing it.
A couple of hours after attacking the chalet and arresting whomever was there, Engr. Hossam Khalaf and Mrs. Ola al-Qaradawi’s house in Cairo was raided. The house was inspected in a haphazard manner and the Qatari passport of Ms. Ola was seized. Moreover, dozens of notes and personal belongings were confiscated without any legal regulations guaranteed even under emergency law. After the disappearance of Mrs. Ola and her husband for two days, and after our attempts to address this tragedy discreetly, we were surprised to find out that their names were added to the case No. 316 of 2017.
That is what happened. Moreover, we would like to emphasize the following:
First: the campaign of #free_Ola_and_Hosam stresses that this incident is nothing but a common occurrence that thousands of people living in Egypt experience daily, whether an Egyptian or a non-Egyptian. We strongly condemn using women and relatives in political conflicts. If there is a dispute between the Egyptian regime and Sheikh Yousef Al-Qaradawi, this does not give the authorities any right to use his children and relatives as pawns to settle the conflict.
Second: The charges against Mrs. Ola and her husband Hosam were not supported by any evidence and were directed at peaceful people who have nothing to do with violence. They have always been known for being good citizens and they have nothing to do with any illegal organizations or their funding. They also never joined any informal groups. The same charges were previously brought against Engr. Hosam Ali Khalaf, the husband of Mrs. Ola, who spent nearly two years in the Al-Aqrab (The scorpion) prison and was eventually released. Today he is remanded with his wife for the same charges without any evidence or logic, as if people’s lives are toys in the hands of a group of corrupt officials.
Third: Mrs. Ola is a Qatari citizen who holds a Qatari passport. She has been prevented from informing her embassy and was denied the right to have an official representative although it is a right that cannot be denied and has been given to many similar cases even to those of Egyptian origin.
Fourth: Some newspapers have claimed that Mrs. Ola and her husband have been hiding before they got arrested and were chased by the security forces. We hereby confirm that this is a pure lie. They were residing in their apartment and their address in Mokattam is well known. They did not leave it except to spend the Eid holiday in a place known by everyone.
Fifth: Mrs. Ola Yousef Al-Qaradawi’s family stands with the campaign and support their daughter, the virtuous mother, and the affectionate grandmother and Engr. Hosam Ali Khalaf’s family supports their dear son Hosam, the esteemed man, the virtuous father and the great grandfather, and calls on the Egyptian authorities to release them immediately, and hold them responsible for any harm suffered by them.
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