Egyptian tells of prison torture 'beyond anything imaginable'

An Egyptian man cleared of accusations he communicated with an joined the Islamic State group has said he experienced widespread torture by police before his trial case to court.

Abdullah Ahmed, a 22-year-old Sohag-based engineering student, was acquitted in Asyut criminal court of links with the IS group after it was proved the evidence against him was fabricated.

He spoke on Tuesday of abuse he saw of prisoners while he was in custody awaiting his trial. He had spent months in custody after being arrested in January.

"It was worse than anything imaginable," he said. "The violations were inhumane and included electric shocks to body parts including the genitals, sexual assault, waterboarding, hanging prisoners by their limbs, and stepping on their faces.

"Wild animals treat each other better than this."

The student said that on arrival political prisoners were told to confess immediately or face a military prosection. No military judge has ever given anyone less than 10 years in prison.

Ahmed was accused of possessing five documents promoting Jihadist ideology, and containing information on guerilla wars and how to recruit civilians as fighters.

He was also accused of carrying a laptop with data on different Syrian movements, US bases in Egypt, al-Qaeda's former leader Osama bin Laden, and a mobile phone with audio files on Hamas' ideology.

Security authorities also claimed he confessed to having taken part in a number of events and protests at Asyut university, and to being a member of the Facebook page of Abu Qatada, a radical Jordanian preacher.

This article is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.