Egyptian pretrial detainees appeal for justice and an end to prolonged detention

The Families of Egyptian Detainees Association (FEDA) has confirmed receiving a new appeal from pretrial detainees held in Egyptian prisons. The appeal is addressed to Egypt’s leaders and public opinion figures, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, religious scholars, civil society leaders, professional and labor unions, human rights organisations, legal professionals, members of the judiciary, university faculty members and the Egyptian public.

The detainees’ appeal calls for an end to what it describes as the continuing waste of detainees’ lives and potential. It demands the application of genuine justice, an end to political division and retaliation against opponents, and measures aimed at preserving the state and its national institutions.

A central demand is the creation of a judicial fact-finding committee. The proposed committee would include representatives of the Supreme Council of the Judiciary, the Court of Cassation, the Courts of Appeal and the Public Prosecution. Its task, according to the appeal, would be to review cases brought by the Supreme State Security Prosecution that rely solely on “investigation reports” without corroborating evidence, material exhibits, or actual events and facts warranting legal accountability or prosecution.

The appeal also calls for the suspension of the work of two State Security Criminal Chambers. It alleges that these chambers have issued thousands of pretrial detention orders without sufficient legal grounds, relying on police investigation reports submitted to them while failing to hear defendants’ legal arguments or defense witnesses.

The detainees further point to what the appeal describes as weak evidence, a lack of concrete facts, confessions or material exhibits, and the failure to implement mandatory release orders. These allegations are presented in the appeal and have not been independently established in the supplied evidence.

Among the appeal’s specific demands is the immediate release of all pretrial detainees who have exceeded the maximum period permitted by law. It also calls for the use of alternatives to pretrial detention provided for under the law, as well as guarantees that defendants who are released will not be repeatedly charged in new cases.

The appeal concludes with a call to turn the page on the past through reconciliation and impartial, comprehensive justice. It asks that political hostility come to an end and that detainees be allowed to spend the remainder of their lives with their wives, children, fathers and mothers.

The appeal comes days before Egypt’s new Code of Criminal Procedure is due to come into force in early October 2026. According to the appeal, pretrial detainees are placing particular hope in the new code, especially those who have spent periods in detention that are much longer than the maximum period stipulated by law.

FEDA’s confirmation of receipt establishes the association as the publication source for the account. The supplied evidence does not provide independent findings on the detainees’ allegations, the number of affected cases or the prospects for the requested measures. The appeal therefore represents the detainees’ demands and claims as conveyed through FEDA.