As part of its project “Justice for Human Rights Defenders”, the Committee for Justice (CFJ) has released its latest quarterly report documenting the continued escalation of systematic violations against activists and human rights defenders in Egypt. These violations include arbitrary arrests, prolonged pretrial detention, deteriorating detention conditions, denial of medical care, and the expansion of cross-border repression policies.
CFJ stated that Egyptian authorities have persisted in using arbitrary detention and extended pretrial imprisonment as punitive measures against peaceful expression and civic engagement. Journalists, lawyers, activists, and labor leaders have been targeted under vague charges such as “joining a terrorist group” and “spreading false news”, in clear disregard of constitutional guarantees and international standards.
The report highlights several prominent cases, including the arrest of writer Hani Sobhi over social media posts, the renewed detention of human rights activist Marwa Abu Zeid, and the re-arrest of journalist Safaa El-Korbeigy. Lawyers such as Roufida Mohamed El-Sayed and Osama El-Sheshtawy were also detained, reflecting the systematic use of pretrial detention as a political weapon.
CFJ further documented alarming deterioration in detention conditions and deliberate medical neglect threatening the lives of detainees, such as human rights lawyer Ahmed Nazeer El-Helou, who suffers from paralysis and severe health complications without access to urgent treatment, and detainee Marwa Ashraf Arafa, who faces life-threatening pulmonary embolism inside prison.
In the context of transnational repression, Egyptian authorities referred researcher Taqadom El-Khatib, residing in Germany, to trial in absentia in a mass case involving dozens of activists and journalists. Additionally, the father of researcher Seif El-Islam Eid was arrested in an apparent attempt to pressure him, underscoring the regime’s pattern of retaliation against critics abroad and their families at home.
CFJ calls on Egyptian authorities to immediately release all individuals arbitrarily detained, end the practice of “rotation” (recycling charges to prolong detention), improve prison conditions, and ensure adequate medical care for detainees. The Committee stresses that the persistence of these violations undermines the rule of law and contravenes Egypt’s international human rights obligations.
Skip to PDF content
