Cairo is increasingly using transnational repression to target political dissidents and activists abroad, while also persecuting their families inside Egypt, a new report published by the Egyptian Human Rights Forum on Wednesday warned.
The report draws on primary and secondary data collected between January 2022 and September 2025, as well as surveys and testimonies from 34 Egyptian dissidents living across multiple countries. It sheds new light on how Egyptian authorities are tightening their grip on critics beyond the country’s borders.
EHRF documented systematic violations, including the denial of passports and identity documents, revocation of citizenship, prosecutions in absentia based on fabricated charges, placement on terrorism lists, cyber harassment, digital surveillance, hacking, and coordinated smear campaigns.
Almost two-thirds of those surveyed had been denied passports, identity papers, or basic consular services, the group said, leaving many in precarious legal situations in their host countries. This reflects a recurring and deliberate pattern rather than isolated incidents, the report added.
Around 72 percent of respondents said their relatives in Egypt had been subjected to police summonses, home raids, or travel bans in retaliation for their activism abroad.
Nearly half of those surveyed reported receiving direct threats via phone calls or messages, or being prosecuted in absentia.
Abdelrahman Ayyash, the lead researcher for the rights group, told The New Arab: "The regime has realised that they don't need to physically arrest a dissident in Europe or the U.S to silence them by putting them on a terror list, denying them a passport, or arresting their family members back home, they can create an open-air prison for activists anywhere in the world.
"And when an authoritarian regime uses international policing tools like Interpol diffusions to silence human rights defenders and journalists with European passports and residencies, it isn't just an Egyptian human rights issue, it is a direct violation of the host countries' sovereignty."
The report also highlights a growing trend of countries allied with Cairo arresting or deporting Egyptian activists despite being aware they could face persecution. EHRF named Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE among the states accused of cooperating with Egypt in such cases.
According to the report, the repression is carried out by several Egyptian state bodies, primarily the Security Agency and the General Intelligence Directorate, which it says work closely with the foreign ministry to "exploit diplomatic missions as tools of pressure against Egyptians abroad".
"Diplomatic missions have been weaponised and used as organs of intimidation, while smear campaigns and online trolling have escalated, targeting families inside Egypt to silence voices abroad," the report said. "This is not a series of isolated incidents, but a deliberate strategy to suppress dissent wherever it may be found."
EHRF said the targeting of activists has left some individuals stranded without citizenship or valid travel documents, placing their legal residency at risk. Others live in constant fear of surveillance or physical attack.
The rights group said Egypt’s actions violate its obligations under international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention Against Torture, and the 1951 Refugee Convention.
A growing concern, the report added, is that law enforcement authorities in host countries often fail to recognise these cases as transnational repression, instead treating them as personal disputes or isolated incidents of harassment.
One case cited is that of Germany-based Egyptian journalist Basma Mostafa, whose situation has been documented by the UN. While the threat she faces has been acknowledged, EHRF said, institutional responses have failed to keep pace with the level of risk.
Kuwait was singled out as the country that has allegedly worked most openly with Egypt on the issue.
"In June 2023, Kuwait showed the same cooperation in the case of engineer Sayyed al-Shuwayhi, an Egyptian-Turkish dissident residing in Istanbul," the report said.
It said that similar cooperation was seen in June 2023, when Kuwait deported engineer Sayyed al Shuwayhi, an Egyptian-Turkish dissident who had been residing in Istanbul.
Turkey, which has long served as a refuge for Egyptian exiles, was also criticised for tightening residency and work permit procedures for some activists, particularly those with political or media profiles, creating what the report described as a climate of fear and uncertainty.
EHRF further accused Egyptian authorities of misusing Interpol by issuing Red Notices against dissidents based on politically motivated charges.
The report calls on the Egyptian government to end its intimidation practices, halt violations of international law, and stop punitive consular measures that deny citizens passports or basic documentation. It also urges other states to guarantee the safety of Egyptian activists and to review cooperation with Cairo that could expose individuals to persecution.