Egypt’s Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said on Sunday that police officers who committed violations will be punished, in the wake of consecutive alleged deadly cases of torture in police stations recently.
"Anyone who did something wrong will be held accountable," Ismail stated on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting.
He said that violations would not be overlooked, confirming they would be investigated and that the results will be announced to the Egyptian people.
Torture is forbidden by Egypt's 2014 constitution, with Article 52 stating, "torture in all its forms is a crime without a statute of limitations."
On Sunday, prosecution ordered the detainment of a policeman in Ismailiya governorate for four days pending investigations into torturing to death veterinarian Afify Houssni.
On Thursday, hundreds protested in Luxor governorate over the death of a 47-year-old man whose family says was tortured to death in a local police station.
Egypt’s interior ministry said on Sunday it will not show any leniency toward “isolated incidents” from members of the police force amid reports of policemen allegedly torturing to death two citizens in Luxor and Ismailiya governorates while in custody.
Also on Sunday, Egypt’s semi-independent National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) released a statement denouncing the death of three civilians last week in police stations from alleged torture.
The council said it is monitoring the situation and called for the punishment of those found to be accountable.
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