Cairo accused of ‘punishment by proxy’ after British-Egyptian woman arrested over sister's activism

Egyptian authorities have detained a British-Egyptian woman, Eman el-Shazly, in what her lawyers claim is an attempt to silence her sister's activism against President Sisi's government. Eman, a 45-year-old mother of four from Birmingham, was arrested on August 16th while visiting Egypt. Her lawyer asserts the authorities detained her to intimidate her sister, Mona el-Shazly, into ceasing her criticism of the government.

Mona operates a UK-based YouTube channel with 130,000 subscribers, often focusing on corruption within Egypt's security services and public utilities, industries heavily reliant on the military's extensive business interests.

Eman's brothers, Hassan and Eid, previously served nearly three years in pretrial detention on charges that echo those now leveled against their sister. These allegations include "promoting the ideas of a terrorist organization on social media, as well as broadcasting false news harmful to state security," claims frequently used against opponents of the Sisi administration.

The UK Foreign Office informed the family that Eman is being held at the 10th of Ramadan Rehabilitation Centre, alongside her brothers, who were rearrested in May.

The British government has acknowledged Egypt's practice of using "punishment by proxy" against critics living abroad. Human Rights Watch has documented a similar pattern of the regime employing relatives to intimidate dissidents. Mona's husband, Zeesharn Moustapha, has initiated a fundraising campaign to cover the family's escalating legal expenses and expressed deep concern for Eman's safety and well-being.

Egypt's Supreme State Security Prosecution ordered her detention for 15 days pending further investigation, a situation that could potentially lead her to confinement within the country's notoriously abusive prison system, where human rights groups have reported extensive torture, medical neglect, and degrading treatment.