EuroMed Rights has published a new in-depth report titled “Egypt’s Human Rights Crisis and Crackdown on Defenders”, offering a comprehensive overview of the serious deterioration in human rights conditions in Egypt under the rule of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
The report documents how the Egyptian authorities have created a repressive legal and political environment that enables widespread violations and suppresses any form of dissent. Through laws that restrict freedom of expression, association, and assembly, as well as amendments to the constitution and the criminal justice system, the state has institutionalised impunity and undermined judicial independence. Peaceful protest has been effectively criminalised, and broad counter-terrorism laws are regularly used to detain critics without due process.
Thousands of individuals have been subjected to arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture, and unfair trials. The use of pretrial detention as a form of punishment, the denial of legal safeguards, and the reliance on mass trials and death sentences reflect a systematic misuse of the justice system. Inhumane detention conditions and denial of medical care have also resulted in numerous deaths in custody.
Civic space in Egypt has been increasingly restricted through attacks on civil society organisations, political parties, trade unions, and independent media. Human rights defenders, journalists, political activists, and lawyers are among those targeted with harassment, arrests, asset freezes, travel bans, and prosecutions. Particular groups, such as women human rights defenders, LGBTI+ activists, and defenders of religious minorities, face additional layers of discrimination and violence.
The report also examines government initiatives such as the National Human Rights Strategy and the National Dialogue, highlighting how they serve as image-management tools rather than efforts to address root causes of repression. Egypt’s cooperation with international human rights mechanisms remains minimal, and retaliation against those who engage with UN bodies continues.
Based on documentation from rights groups, legal experts, and testimonies from victims, the report provides clear evidence of state-led repression and offers concrete recommendations for international stakeholders to respond through pressure, monitoring, and support for victims.
The full report is available here