Hussein Taha Hussein Mahmoud
Hussein was born in the Sidi Bishr district of Alexandria in 1992. He was the eldest son and was closest to his father. “He was not only a son, but I also considered him my friend,” said Hussein’s father. Hussein studied law at Alexandria University and he was a loyal fan of Zamalek club. According to his mother, he was not satisfied with what was happening in Egypt and was hurt by the injustices he saw and was willing to give his life for the sake of justice.
On January 28th, Hussein went with his friend Hisham to Friday prayer at Al-Qaed Ibrahim Mosque. After the prayer was over protesters began shouting in the courtyard of the mosque, security forces arrived and threw tear gas at the protesters within the mosque. Hussein did not fear the effects of the incendiary bombs being lobbed by the security forces. Within minutes of the demonstration, he disappeared from Hisham’s eyes.
After the demonstrations that day his father spent two days looking for his son throughout the city. He checked several hospitals until he found his son on the 29th of January in a hospital morgue. Hussein’s cause of death was gunshot wounds to the chest.
Hussein’s mother said that once he came to hug her, “When he was in my arms he old me that ‘I love you so much, my mother.’ I felt something strange and I asked him if there was anything going on. In my heart I felt like he would leave me soon.”
“My son said to me ‘I hope to be a soldier or a Mujahid, God willing,’” recounts Hussein’s father. “I said to him, ‘My son, we are at peace. How can you be a warrior? He replied bravely: ‘Perhaps there will be a call for jihad, and then I will answer the call.’”
In a message to his son, Hussein father said: “Your dream is to bring about a revolution in Egypt, and you and your generation were able to achieve the change we did not achieve.”