What's happened
Human rights activists Xu Zhiyong, Alaa Abdel Fattah, and Zarema Musaeva are enduring severe conditions in prisons across China, Egypt, and Russia. Xu's hunger strike raises health concerns, while Fattah's mother protests for his release. Musaeva's health deteriorates amid allegations of arbitrary detention, highlighting ongoing human rights abuses.
Why it matters
What the papers say
According to The Independent, Xu Zhiyong's hunger strike has raised alarms about his health, with fellow activists urging the Chinese government to provide adequate medical care. Meanwhile, Alaa Abdel Fattah's mother, Laila Soueif, is on hunger strike in the UK, demanding her son's release, expressing disappointment in the current government's lack of action. The Moscow Times highlights Zarema Musaeva's deteriorating health in prison, with the European Court of Human Rights ruling her detention as arbitrary, further emphasizing the need for international attention on her case.
How we got here
The plight of these activists stems from their opposition to oppressive regimes. Xu Zhiyong has been imprisoned for advocating democracy in China, while Alaa Abdel Fattah has faced multiple charges for his pro-democracy activism in Egypt. Zarema Musaeva's detention is seen as retaliation against her family's human rights work in Chechnya.
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