Adjournment of Patrick Zaki’s hearing: statements by the University of Bologna

The Egyptian Court of Mansoura has once again adjourned the trial of Patrick Zaki. Despite his release from prison on 8 December, the trial against Zaki is still ongoing. As the University of Bologna has been doing for the last two years, it will continue to work to focus attention on this issue until Patrick is free to return to the facilities of his university.

“Over the past weeks, we have never ceased to monitor the situation day by day. We knew that an adjournment was a possible, and indeed probable, outcome” said Rector Giovanni Molari. “Once again, we can only wait, be vigilant, and actively commit to have our student back. We hope Patrick will have all the tenacity and determination he needs to withstand this umpteenth adjournment. Patrick knows that we support him, the whole University of Bologna stands by him and awaits him with deeper affection than ever.”

“Patrick's life is once again on hold, and so are ours. We had to hold back our breath just when it was ready to burst into a cry of joy” added Professor Federico Condello, the Rector's Delegate for Students. “We are at least comforted to know that his freedom has not been taken away, that his loved ones surround him and that his case drew wide international attention. Over the next few months, we will never cease to give Patrick the full support of our entire University, where 90,000 fellow students want him back and await him.”

Patrick Zaki was arrested at Cairo airport on 7 February 2020 as he was returning home for a short break before starting the second semester of the European Master in Gender and Women's Studies - GEMMA at the University of Bologna. Adjournment after adjournment, he spent 22 months in prison until 8 December 2021 when he was released. However, his trial did not end on that day and was adjourned to today. Patrick arrived in Italy in September 2019 with a prestigious Erasmus Mundus scholarship that he obtained through a strict selection process competing with almost six hundred students from all over the world. The Erasmus Mundus programme awards 29 scholarships across Europe including 3 in Bologna.