When the notorious Case 173 ended in Egypt last year, local human rights defenders (HRDs) hoped it might mean the end of more than a decade targeting human rights organisations. The case, opened in 2011 and known as the “foreign funding” case, targeted NGOs with foreign links, and a range of HRDs had their assets frozen and were prevented from leaving the country. The psychological impact on local HRDs was severe too, a clear signal that despite the revolution of 2011 which ended the dictatorship of president Hosni Mubarak, the repression of human rights NGOs was to continue.

The Executive Director and Founder of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), Hossam Bahgat, was one of those originally targeted in Case 173, when he was prevented from travel and had his assets frozen. But on 19 January 2025 he was summoned for questioning again by the Supreme State Security Prosecution, and charged with terrorism-related offences, namely alleged “involvement with and financing a terrorist group” and “spreading false news,” then released him on bail. The summons followed the release of an EIPR report about dire conditions in a prison in Al-Sharqiya governorate. Bahgat is out on bail, but threats against him and those who do human rights work remain.