The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) has strongly condemned the Egyptian Parliament’s adoption of a new Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) on 16 October 2025, citing violations of the right to a fair trial and freedom from arbitrary detention, as well as the perpetuation of impunity for enforced disappearances. According to Saïd Benarbia, ICJ Middle East and North Africa Programme Director, the Egyptian legislature missed the opportunity to align the CPC with Egypt’s constitutional and international human rights obligations, instead empowering law enforcement officials while providing insufficient safeguards for detainees and defense rights.
Earlier, on 29 April 2025, the Egyptian Parliament had adopted a draft CPC despite widespread criticism from UN mandate-holders, MPs, and NGOs. The draft maintained impunity for abuses by security officials, including enforced disappearances, torture, and other ill-treatment, by granting public prosecutors sole authority to decide whether to investigate allegations of abuse, while denying victims and families the right to challenge refusals. It also failed to limit prosecutors’ powers to extend pre-trial detention arbitrarily and introduced remote hearings that compromised judges’ ability to review detention legality and detainees’ well-being, while allowing prison officers to observe lawyers’ consultations.
On 21 September 2025, President al-Sisi returned the draft CPC to Parliament, requesting revisions on defendants’ rights, alternatives to pretrial detention, and clarification of vague language. Despite this, the legislature finalized the CPC on 16 October 2025 without addressing key concerns. The new CPC includes provisions that allow public officials to conduct warrantless home searches in broadly defined “cases of distress,” posing risks to privacy and protection against arbitrary interference. It also permits public prosecutors to interrogate suspects without a lawyer present under vague conditions, further undermining fair trial guarantees.
The ICJ has called on Egyptian authorities to halt implementation of the new CPC and to draft a revised version that fully complies with international human rights law and standards, ensuring robust protections for defendants and preventing impunity for abuses.
