Committee for Justice has documented a decision by the Supreme State Security Prosecution in Cairo to renew the detention of journalist Safaa El-Korbeigy for 15 days pending investigation in Case No. 7256/2025. The charges stem from a Facebook post she published in December 2024 addressing the displacement of residents from the “Agiba Chalets” area in Matrouh.
The prosecution has charged El-Korbeigy with “spreading false news,” “joining a terrorist group,” and “using social media to commit terrorist crimes” — the same accusations she previously faced in a 2022 case, during which she spent nearly two years in pretrial detention before being released.
Human rights lawyer Khaled Ali confirmed that the investigation following her arrest was based solely on one post dated December 2024 concerning the forced displacement of some residents of Matrouh (Agiba Chalets) from their homes.
The Journalists’ Syndicate has called for her immediate release, stressing the need to consider her physical and psychological health, and rejecting the continued detention of journalists for their opinions or professional activities.
El-Korbeigy is Head of the Economics Department and Executive Editor at Radio and Television Magazine, holds a senior position as Chief Program Presenter (Director General) at Maspero, and is a member of the Journalists’ Syndicate. She has no political affiliations but is known for defending the rights of Maspero employees and opposing violations against them.
Committee for Justice strongly rejects this arrest, considering it a blatant violation of the right to freedom of expression guaranteed under Article 65 of the Egyptian Constitution and contrary to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Egypt is bound to uphold. The Committee views the repeated use of pretrial detention in publishing and opinion cases as a form of arbitrary detention and a systematic policy to silence independent journalism, turning words into crimes.
Committee for Justice affirms that targeting journalists and media professionals is a clear attempt by the authorities in Egypt to muzzle dissent, in flagrant violation of freedom of opinion and expression as enshrined in human rights and international law. The organization calls for the immediate release of journalist Safaa El-Korbeigy and an end to the targeting of journalists