Egypt: Charges and heavy bail against Aida Seif El-Dawla amid increasing pressure on human rights defenders in Egypt
On 15 February 2026, woman human rights defender Aida Seif El-Dawla was interrogated by an investigator of the Dokki Prosecution Office and charged with “spreading false news in Egypt and abroad with the aim of disrupting public security and peace and causing confusion.” The Prosecution Office released her on bail, yet the case against her is ongoing and she remains at risk of further summons or arrest.
Aida Seif El-Dawla is an Egyptian woman human rights defender who has been involved in human rights activism since the 1980s and has a long history of defending human rights in Egypt. She is the co-founder and director of the El Nadeem Centre for Victims of Violence and Torture, an independent Egyptian human rights organisation founded in 1993. It assists former detainees and provides them with psychological support. The El Nadeem Centre opposes torture in police stations and prisons and publishes periodic reports on cases of torture, death, and medical negligence in police stations and prisons. It also runs programmes combating violence against women and providing assistance to refugees.
On 15 February 2026, woman human rights defender Aida Seif El-Dawla was interrogated by an investigator of the Dokki Prosecution Office and charged with “spreading false news in Egypt and abroad with the aim of disrupting public security and peace and causing confusion.” The Prosecution Office released her on bail, yet the case against her is ongoing and she remains at risk of further summons or arrest.
Aida Seif El-Dawla is an Egyptian woman human rights defender who has been involved in human rights activism since the 1980s and has a long history of defending human rights in Egypt. She is the co-founder and director of the El Nadeem Centre for Victims of Violence and Torture, an independent Egyptian human rights organisation founded in 1993. It assists former detainees and provides them with psychological support. The El Nadeem Centre opposes torture in police stations and prisons and publishes periodic reports on cases of torture, death, and medical negligence in police stations and prisons. It also runs programmes combating violence against women and providing assistance to refugees.
On 15 February 2026, Aida Seif El-Dawla appeared before the Dokki Prosecution Office in response to a summons she had received, but she was not informed of the accusations or charges against her. The summons was based on case No. 809 of 2026 by the Supreme State Security. An investigator of the Prosecution Office interrogated Aida Seif El-Dawla and informed her that she was charged with “spreading false news in Egypt and abroad with the aim of disrupting public security and peace and causing confusion.”
The charges against Aida Seif El-Dawla were reportedly based on multiple complaints. However, when her lawyers sought clarification regarding the number and origin of these complaints, the investigator stated that they were “too many to count” and refused to disclose who had submitted them. This failure to provide pertinent information contravenes Aida Seif El-Dawla’s right to a fair trial, which encompasses the right to know the identities of complainants. The investigator reportedly relied on two State Security investigation reports outlining the accusations of spreading false news and disrupting public security. The woman human rights defender believes that these reports constitute the sole basis of the case against her.
The interrogation focused on the 2025 annual media archive published by the El Nadeem Centre, particularly on two pages listing the names of police officers and prison doctors implicated in human rights violations reports. The investigator did not address the archive as a whole but concentrated solely on the inclusion of these names. Reportedly, the Prosecution Office intends to protect the alleged perpetrators of torture and ill-treatment from public accountability. At the end of the interrogation, the investigator ordered her release on bail set at 100,000 Egyptian pounds (1,800 Euros).
The case against Aida Seif El-Dawla emerges in the context of a broader trend of investigations targeting writers, politicians, and activists by the Public Prosecutor's Office for National Security. These individuals face recurring charges, including “spreading false news.” The Egyptian authorities frequently target human rights defenders, opposition figures, politicians, and journalists to silence them, particularly when their activities involve exposing human rights violations, including reports of torture and ill-treatment in prisons and detention centers.
Front Line Defenders condemns the ongoing harassment and legal charges against Aida Seif El-Dawla and other human rights defenders in Egypt. The organisation expresses its deep concern over the increasing use of disproportionately high bail amounts. Considering the cost of living in Egypt, bail set at 100,000 Egyptian pounds – such as in the case of Aida Seif El-Dawla – imposes substantial financial pressure on affected persons and appears to be a deliberate tactic to intimidate and silence human rights defenders.
Front Line Defenders urges the authorities in Egypt to:
- Drop all charges against Aida Seif El-Dawla and cease all forms of judicial harassment;
- Halt the frequent summonses and interrogations of human rights defenders which are based on their peaceful and legitimate work to protect and promote human rights;
- Uphold and promote Egypt's constitutional and international obligations under international law regarding the protection of human rights defenders;
- Ensure that all human rights defenders in Egypt can carry out their work without restrictions and fear of reprisals.
