Rights groups urge African Commission to confront Egypt's deepening human rights crisis

The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights should take decisive action to address Egypt’s long-running human rights crisis following its review of the country’s record, 22 organizations said on Thursday. The statement followed the commission’s 85th session, during which both the Egyptian government and the commission’s country rapporteur presented reports that rights groups claim misrepresented or overlooked key abuses.

Egypt’s official report, covering 2019 to 2024, rejected the existence of detained journalists or prisoners of conscience and framed restrictions on civil society as measures to promote “transparency.” The country rapporteur’s report similarly omitted reference to widespread violations and described the 2023 presidential election as “peaceful” and “competitive,”