Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year reign was riddled – especially at the end – by dissent. As protesters took to the streets and filled Tahrir Square early last year, Mubarak and his secret police cracked down even harder on Egypt’s population. Activists say the regime tortured and killed many who they deemed enemies of the state. And it’s all archived in the secret files of the secret police, files that could further incriminate Mubarak and spell bad news for his cronies.
Helena Merriman investigated the whereabouts of the secret police files for our partner the BBC, and spoke with protesters who stormed government buildings to sneak out what files they could.