Rahma was a student at the Institute of Social Work and the elder sister of Nora and Ibrahim. Her family went through some hardship after her father was imprisoned on fabricated charges, according to her family, and when the municipality closed off the communications centre—the family’s only source of income.
Rahma wasn’t different from other people her age, she wanted social justice and a better future. Her family problems added fuel to the fire and on the “Day of Anger,” Rahma decided to participate in the demonstrations. Her mother tried to stop her, but Rahma insisted. Just before noon, she went to pray Jumaa at a mosque in the Shubra area near where she lived. After she prayed, she headed to the demonstrations marching towards Tahrir Square. She was unfazed by the police brutality and found her brother Ibrahim among the protesters. He was near her when she was shot by police and rushed her to the hospital. The shot hit her heart and she suffered in the hospital for 2 days, dying on January 30th. The first autopsy reported the cause of death was a sharp drop in blood pressure, but her brother Ibrahim insisted on reporting the truth—her death was caused by a gunshot to the chest.