A video circulating on social media has caused panic in Al-Maryoutiya, south of Giza, after documenting a mass escape of dozens of residents from an addiction treatment center, amid chaos in the surrounding streets.
The video showed young people smashing the doors and iron windows of the clinic before fleeing to the roads, causing panic among passersby and eyewitnesses. A number of the escapees claimed that they were subjected to violations inside the clinic, including mistreatment and the absence of medical care, confirming the presence of clear signs of beatings on their bodies.
Treatment turned into a "nightmare"
Some of them told local media that the treatment journey had turned into a "nightmare," accusing those in charge of the clinic of deliberately failing to provide health care and using violence instead of treatment, which made them lose their desire to quit drug use.
The security services have begun to examine the video circulating to uncover the circumstances of the incident, identify the clinic, and verify its legal status and licensing from the Egyptian Ministry of Health, at a time when the incident has shed light on the file of unlicensed centers for addiction treatment.
The Ministry of Health had recently announced the closure of 18 unlicensed centers in the Al-Maryoutiya, Hadayek Al-Ahram, Al-Mokattam, and Al-Shorouk areas, after seizing drugs listed on drug schedules and others of unknown origin that were given to residents to sedate them forcibly.
The official spokesman for the ministry, Hossam Abdel Ghaffar, said that these centers violate the laws regulating medical and mental health facilities, and lack the standards for infection control and environmental requirements, which exposes residents to serious health risks.
For his part, the head of the Central Administration for Non-Governmental Treatment Institutions and Licensing, Hisham Zaki, confirmed that the ministry has taken the necessary legal measures to ensure the safety of patients, stressing the continuation of regulatory campaigns to ensure that all medical facilities comply with the approved health and legal standards.
(Arabic)
