The House of Representatives is closely following the investigation into the tragic death of Egyptian teenager Mariam Mustafa, Alaa Abed, head of parliament's Human Rights Committee, told reporters this week. The 18-year-old student was left in a coma and later died after being attacked by a group of six girls in the city of Nottingham on 20 February. Abed said a parliamentary delegation visited London this week to discuss “the brutal attack which led to Mustafa's death” with British officials and will submit a report to Parliament Speaker Ali Abdel-Aal “about the facts and circumstances of the case”. “The report will be discussed by the committee after which I hope it is debated in a plenary session,” said Abed. The Egyptian parliamentary delegation, including Abed and MP Ismail Nasreddin, said it held talks with Simon McDonald, permanent undersecretary and head of the Diplomatic Service at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Nottingham MP Christopher Leslie, and Superintendent Rob Griffin of Nottinghamshire police, who is overseeing the investigations. The delegation also spoke with Egypt's ambassador to the UK Nasser Kamel, Consul-General Alaa Youssef, and Egyptian Embassy Medical Advisor Ahmed Hussein. Hussein — an Egyptian British national — is tasked with reviewing medical reports pertaining to Mustafa's case, said Abed. “The forensic and post-mortem investigation and reports made by medical examiners are important in determining the nature of the attack on Mustafa and whether or not legal action should be taken against the Nottingham hospital where she was admitted,” said Abed. Abed revealed he had asked the British authorities to allow Egyptian prosecutors to participate in the investigation into the death of Mustafa. On 17 March Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek ordered officials to collect all investigative and medical reports on Mustafa from the UK authorities. “Sadek's decision came after the death of Mariam and other Egyptians in European and American cities sparked alarm among MPs who fear they may be victims of racially motivated attacks,” said Abed. MP Nasreddin says the information available so far suggest a racially motivated attack, something British authorities deny. UK officials said the post-mortem examination will be complete within 10 days, said Nasreddin. The information the Egyptian Embassy has acquired so far suggests Mustafa's initial hospital treatment “raises questions” and could lead to a legal case on the grounds of medical negligence, says Abed. Dahlia Youssef, head of the Egyptian-British Parliamentary Association, is closely coordinating with British MPs on the case. “They are exerting pressure so Nottinghamshire police thoroughly investigate Mustafa's murder and all information is made available,” said Abed. “We are also focussed on the case of Shaden Al-Gohari, a 22-year-old Egyptian student at the German University in Cairo, who died in Cottbus in Germany in April last year, three days after being hit by a car,” said Nasreddin. On Tuesday Egypt's ambassador to the UN in Geneva urged the British and German authorities to conclude their investigations into the deaths of Mustafa and Al-Gohari and bring perpetrators to justice. Though there is strong evidence Al-Gohari was racially abused by a passenger in the car after she was hit the German authorities have yet to issue a report on her case, Nasreddin noted.
