CAIRO – The founder of an Egyptian center that treats victims of torture and trauma says the institution has been closed down by police.
Prominent psychiatrist Dr. Aida Seif Dowla tells The Associated Press that when staff arrived at the Al-Nadeem Center for Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence on Thursday the facility had been sealed off by police and the building's doorman taken into custody for questioning.
The closure comes as Dowla has been fighting a court order from the Egyptian Cabinet to have the center shuttered. The order has never been made public but is reportedly based on vague claims of violations of Health Ministry regulations.
The center is also one of a number of non-government organizations under investigation on charges of illegally receiving foreign funds.
