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Living Archive
Defenders.
An open record of human rights defenders across the Middle East and North Africa. Every entry is a case file — dated, sourced, and kept current.
173
Records on
the open archive
87
Currently held
detained · sentenced · on trial
57
In exile or under
transnational repression
11
In memoriam
killed for their work
The Record
Filtered cases
HM-EG-2026-050
Released
Sanaa Seif
Sanaa Seif was abducted in June 2020 outside the prosecutor's office where she had gone to file a complaint after being assaulted.…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-049
Released
Solafa Magdy
Egyptian journalist and 2020 IWMF Courage in Journalism Award winner, detained since November 2019 on terrorism and false news charges. Denied medical…
Medical urgency
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-048
Released
Ahmed Samir Santawy
Ahmed Samir Santawy, a graduate student researching women's reproductive rights in Egypt, was sentenced to four years in prison by an emergency…
Hunger strike
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-047
In exile
Alaa Abdel Fattah
Alaa Abdel Fattah, a blogger and digital rights defender, was arrested in 2019 while complying with probation conditions. He has been held…
Hunger strike
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-043
Under TNR
Amal Fathy
Women's rights defender sentenced to prison for criticising Egypt's failure to protect women from sexual harassment. Convicted on false-news and insult charges…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-041
Detained
Nashwa Al-Deeb
Opposition candidate who withdrew from Egypt's November 2025 parliamentary elections citing electoral fraud, vote-buying, and systematic irregularities in the Munira and Giza…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-039
Under TNR
Mohamed Mahmoud Ebrahim Shahin
An imam and community mediator in Turin for two decades, Mohamed Shahin faces deportation to Egypt after Italy revoked his residence permit…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-053
In forced exile
Mostafa Fouad
Egyptian human rights lawyer living in exile since 2017. After co-founding HuMENA and launching a campaign to expose officials implicated in abuses,…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-034
On trial
Said Abdelrazek
Said Abdelrazek converted to Christianity and was arrested from his Cairo home in July 2025. He was subjected to torture and held…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-033
Released
Esraa Abdel Fattah
Egyptian journalist and co-founder of the April 6 Youth Movement, known as "Facebook Girl" since 2008. Released on bail in July 2021…
Arrested 2019
HM-EG-2026-032
Released
Mahienour El-Masry
Mahienour El-Masry is a lawyer who organizes protests and fundraises bail for political prisoners. Arrested outside the prosecutor's office in 2019, she…
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-031
Under restriction
Hossameldin Ali
President of the Egyptian Democratic Academy, which promotes democracy and political participation, Hossameldin Ali faced travel bans, asset freezes, and detention in…
Open case file