Egypt’s Supreme State Security Prosecution has extended the detention of 16 members of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light, accused of belonging to an outlawed group. More than a year into the investigation, prosecutors have added a new defendant to Case No. 2025 of 2025, charged with publishing social media posts deemed to promote religious ideas, according to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR).
EIPR stated that the new defendant—whose name was withheld—was not included in the original investigation report under which the other defendants were charged. The original case, dating back to March 2025, involved “the hanging of a promotional banner for a television channel affiliated with this religious movement on a pedestrian bridge in Giza.”
According to EIPR, defense lawyers argued that the new defendant’s inclusion was unrelated to the original incidents under investigation. The prosecution, however, justified the move based on the individual’s social media activity.
The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light (AROPL), which emerged in 1999, describes itself as an extension of the essence of the three Abrahamic faiths, advocating for the “sovereignty of God” and freedom of belief.
On several occasions, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has emphasized the need to respect “freedom of belief and non-belief.” Most recently, during a meeting with Ministry of Endowments preachers last November, he urged them to be “guardians of freedom and choice,” asserting that “no one is a guardian over anyone else.”
However, while the Egyptian Constitution guarantees that freedom of belief is “absolute,” it restricts the right to practice religious rituals to Muslims, Christians, and Jews only. The Supreme Administrative Court upheld this concept in a 2022 ruling, stating that “freedom of belief is guaranteed as long as it remains internal, without publicly professing what contradicts Abrahamic religions.”
According to EIPR, security forces have arrested at least 17 people in a “campaign” targeting AROPL followers since March 2025. Those detained include a Syrian refugee who was subsequently deported, as well as the owner of an advertising office and a printing press owner. Some detainees were held for weeks after their initial arrest before facing prosecution.
The EIPR characterized this case as part of a “broader pattern of prosecutions between 2025 and 2026 related to freedom of expression in religious matters.” The organization documented the arrest of more than 53 people in eight similar cases, 43 of whom remain in pretrial detention.
The initiative warned of “escalating restrictions on freedom of opinion and expression linked to freedom of belief.” It emphasized that the Egyptian Constitution guarantees absolute freedom of belief and that the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights protects various beliefs, including non-monotheistic ones.
The EIPR statement called for the release of all those detained in cases related to freedom of religion and belief, and demanded an end to the prosecution of citizens for their views.
Last July, the initiative reported that the detainees had been “subjected to incidents of torture and inhumane treatment, which they reported to the Public Prosecution.” The EIPR noted that the abuse included physical torture, coercion, deprivation of medication and adequate food, and incitement against them within detention facilities.
