Committee for Justice (CFJ) has documented today’s decision by the Supreme State Security Prosecution to renew the pretrial detention of Egyptian citizen Mr. El-Sayed Sobhi Ahmed Eid (63), father of researcher, activist, and human rights defender Seif El-Islam Eid, for 15 additional days in connection with Case No. 6468 of 2025. The renewal took place via a video screen that denied him effective communication with the court, in clear violation of fair trial standards.
Security forces arrested Mr. Eid on 22 October 2025 after raiding his home in Alexandria, followed by raids on his family’s residence in Kafr El-Dawar and his maternal grandfather’s home (aged 82). He was then subjected to six days of enforced disappearance, during which he was denied access to his lawyer and family, before appearing before the prosecution on charges of joining and financing a banned group, and was subsequently placed in Al-‘Ashir Min Ramadan Prison.
It is worth noting that Mr. Eid had previously been arrested on 30 April 2025 and forcibly disappeared for 18 days, during which he was interrogated about his son Seif El-Islam’s activities abroad, before being released.
In a statement posted on his personal account, Seif El-Islam—activist, researcher, and human rights defender—said:
“What the security forces are doing is an attempt to punish me for my patriotic work, my defense of my country, and my writings, which nothing but death will stop. I am an Egyptian citizen, my name is Seif El-Islam, I am 30 years old, and I have lived outside Egypt for seven years. I was arrested and spent one year and one month in prison. I believe in my right and my beloved country Egypt’s right to freedom, and in every Egyptian citizen’s right to live in dignity under a system that guarantees freedom of expression without being kidnapped and disappeared like my beloved father, whom nothing in this world will stop me from pursuing every path to free him from his captors.”
CFJ stresses that the continued detention of Mr. Eid constitutes a blatant violation of multiple legal and constitutional guarantees, most notably Article 54 of the Egyptian Constitution, which safeguards personal freedom and prohibits detention except by a reasoned judicial order; Articles 9 and 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which prohibit arbitrary arrest and guarantee the right to a fair trial; the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, which obligate states to ensure detainees’ right to legal counsel without restrictions; and the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela Rules), which guarantee humane treatment of detainees.
CFJ condemns the continued detention of Mr. Eid, considering it collective punishment linked to his son’s research and activism, in violation of the principle of individual criminal responsibility under international law. The Committee warns that such practices represent a serious regression in the rule of law.
CFJ calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. El-Sayed Sobhi Ahmed Eid, an end to the policy of enforced disappearance and arbitrary detention, and guarantees of his right to defense and communication with his lawyer and family. The Committee also demands an independent investigation into the arrest and enforced disappearance, accountability for those responsible, and respect for Egypt’s obligations under the ICCPR and the Convention Against Torture.
