Hamdeen Sabahi

Sabahi supported Mohamed Morsi's removal by the military in July 2013 and joined the political camp backing the transition led by Sissi. His position regarding the subsequent repression, particularly Rabaa, became an enduring controversy.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Political responsibility

As Secretary-General of the Arab National Congress, Sabahi joined a delegation received by Bashar al-Assad in Damascus in August 2023. The visit prompted criticism in Egypt, particularly as he himself had condemned the Syrian regime's repression in 2012.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Directly implicated

After Sabahi and other figures from the Civil Democratic Movement called for a boycott of the 2018 presidential election, the prosecutor ordered examination of a complaint accusing them, among other things, of incitement to overthrow the regime.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

During his election campaigns, Sabahi faced questions about previous political relations with the Iraqi regime of Saddam Hussein and the Libyan regime of Muammar Gaddafi, and rumours that he had received money from them.

Attribution

Directly implicated

Before the official start of the 2014 presidential campaign, Sabahi publicly presented elements of his manifesto. The electoral commission considered that this breached the timetable rules and examined what action to take.

State of the evidence

Alleged

Attribution

Directly implicated

Sabahi chose to challenge Sissi while the Muslim Brotherhood and other political forces boycotted the election, denouncing repression and the absence of genuine competition.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Directly implicated

Following his heavy defeat, Sabahi's team challenged the results, citing breaches of electoral rules and arrests of campaign members.

State of the evidence

Allegations

Attribution

Directly implicated

Sabahi built his career on Nasserism, a movement combining social justice and Arab nationalism with the legacy of an authoritarian regime that severely repressed opposition.

State of the evidence

Documented

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Not applicable

Attribution

Political responsibility

In March 2003, while serving as a member of parliament and openly opposing the Iraq War, Sabahi was arrested outside his home following anti-war demonstrations. The authorities detained him as part of an investigation into incitement to demonstrate.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Protagonist is the victim

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist is the victim

Sabahi, then a journalist and Nasserist activist, was arrested in February 1991, two days after a speech at Cairo University opposing the Gulf War, amid detentions of opponents under emergency law.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Protagonist is the victim

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist is the victim