Amr Mohamed Mohamed Kassem
The last words Dr. Amr’s wife heard him say were: “Don’t worry.” He had called her to reassure her that he’s safe while participating in a peaceful protest in Alexandria, his hometown and current residence. He promised that he would soon be home with her and their daughter Roqyah, their 9-month-old, but he never came home. A sniper’s bullet prevented him from keeping his promise, and a half an hour later his wife received a call from an unfamiliar voice from his number to inform her that Amr was murdered.
According to his wife Asmaa, Amr was hit by a bullet to the back of the head. His wife thinks that the police forces likely targeted him due to his large beard, mistakenly assuming that he was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood.
His wife said in her testimony according to one of the Canadian newspapers: “He was not a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, nor was he affiliated with them. He didn’t even go to many protests, but he felt strongly about the grave injustice going on in Egypt and he was just someone who couldn’t stay silent.”
Dr. Amr met his wife in Alexandria, they were married for two years before he was killed. After having their daughter they moved to Canada. He was visiting family when the political strife erupted and lead to his death.
Asmaa said: “Amr was the love of my life, a pleasant person—generous. He was the best husband and loved his daughter dearly”.
After Asmaa heard that Amr was injured, her father in law and her brother, who are both doctors, to collect his body and continue with burial procedures. Amr was among the many that were murdered as police forces continued shooting protestors by the dozens over the next several days in Cairo, in Alexandria, and other cities.
Asmaa told the Star, a Canadian newspaper: “These are crimes against humanity. People must know what is going on!” She said regarding her daughter: “I want her to know that her father was brave. He was not afraid of standing his grounds for what he believed in. He will not be with her as she grows up, but his morals will be.”
Amr Kassem was one of thirty people killed in what became known as the “Smouha Incidents.” The Administration of Health Affairs in Alexandria documented their names, the list is as follows:
- Ragab El-Sayed Ahmed 2. Mohamed Abdel Fattah Abdel Aziz 3. Ibrahim Ali Ahmed 4. Gamal Fawzi Abdel Hamid 5. Ahmed El-Sayed Abdel Hai 6. Ragab Mohamed Moawad 7. Mohamed Abdel Raof Ali 8. Essam Ahmed Mohamed 9. Nasr Mohamed Abdullah 10. Emad Abdullah Abdel Latif 11. Sherif Mahmoud Suliman 12. Ahmed Mahmoud Shebl 13. Ahmed Osama Emam 14. Amr Mohamed Mohamed Kassem 15. Ibrahim Shaaban Mohamed 16. Essam Ali El-Sawwy 17. Mohamed Bakr Ramadan 18. Osama El-Sayed Ibrahim 19. Mohamed Mahmoud Abbas 20. Ahmed Shaaban Tag El-din 21. Ahmed Abdel Fattah El-Maghreby 22. Mostafa Farid Mahfouz 23. Mohamed Khamis Habashy 24. Walid Mohamed Touman 25. Islam Atef Foad 26. Ahmed Mohamed Ali 27. Mahrous Ahmed Zaghloul 28. Mostafa Mohamed Aboul Ezm 29. Mohamed Abdulrahman Hassan 30. Abdel Salam Abdel Kader.