The undersigned rights institutions call for the conditional release of writer and poet Ahmed Douma upon his completion of half of his sentence, at which point he will have served six months of the one-year prison term issued against him in June 2026. He received this sentence arbitrarily for exercising his right to freedom of expression through his writings, whether on social media or on the online news sites that publish his work.
The organizations call on the Egyptian authorities to take the necessary measures to achieve this, including considering conditional release as one of the legal avenues available for his release. The organizations stress that raising conditional release is intended as a practical mechanism for ending his detention, and is not the basis of their demand for his freedom. His right to freedom remains the core of this demand, particularly as he was imprisoned in the first place in a case concerning publication and expression of opinion, for which people’s freedom may not be taken away.
On 3 June 2026, the New Cairo Misdemeanor Court sentenced Douma to one year of imprisonment with labor, to be enforced immediately, in Case No. 4894 of 2026 (Fifth Settlement Misdemeanors). The court charged him with “deliberately broadcasting and publishing false news, statements, and rumors inside and outside the country, which would disturb public peace, spread panic, terrorize people, and harm the public interest.”
Following the verdict, Douma’s defense team appealed the ruling. On 16 July 2026, the New Cairo Misdemeanor Appeals Court upheld the sentence of one year of imprisonment with labor.
Douma had been referred to criminal trial on 27 April 2026, days after his arrest, over opinion articles and posts he had published. These included his article on the Al-Araby Al-Jadeed website titled “From the Prison Inside the State to the State Inside the Prison,” in which he reviewed examples from different countries around the world to demonstrate that jailing political opponents threatens the stability of states, as well as a post on his social media account addressing detention conditions.
Douma was arrested on 6 April 2026 by the prosecution after being questioned for hours over the published articles. During a trial session, Douma made statements before the court in which he revealed that he was being subjected to harassment inside his place of detention, and he submitted an official complaint to the court in this regard. He also requested that the court visit his place of detention to inspect conditions there.
The institutions condemn what has happened to Ahmed Douma: continued detention and lengthy periods of imprisonment because of his expression of opinion, particularly since the proceedings against him violate the Egyptian Constitution and law, which guarantee freedom of opinion and expression. They demand his immediate release.
The rights organizations call for the application of the provisions of the Prisons Regulation Law No. 396 of 1956, especially Article 52, which states: “Conditional release may be granted to any person finally sentenced to a custodial penalty if he has served half of the sentence in prison and his conduct during imprisonment inspires confidence in his reform, unless his release poses a danger to public security. In all cases, the period served in prison may not be less than six months.”
The undersigned organizations express their concern over the use of imprisonment and prosecutions as a tool to pursue journalists, creators, and people who hold opinions, which contributes to narrowing the public sphere and undermining the fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed under the Egyptian Constitution and the international conventions that Egypt has ratified. They stress the need to end these prosecutions and to respect the law and the Constitution.
Signatory organizations:
- Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms
- Committee for Justice
- Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
- Egyptian Front for Human Rights
- Refugees Platform in Egypt
- Law and Democracy Support Foundation
- El Nadim Center
- Egyptian Human Rights Forum
- Sinai Foundation for Human Rights
