The family of imprisoned journalist Mohamed Saad Khattab is urgently demanding his release amid a dangerous decline in his health and blatant breach of Egypt’s legal limits on pretrial detention, according to the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms.
In a statement on Wednesday, the commission said Khattab, who suffers from advanced diabetes and severe physical exhaustion, was too ill to attend his last two detention renewal hearings. His family submitted a formal telegram to the Public Prosecutor, warning that further delays could cost him his life.
Khattab has been detained without trial since August 2023, charged with “joining a terrorist group,” “spreading false news,” and “misusing social media.” His legal team argues that his incarceration now violates Article 143 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which sets clear limits on pretrial confinement.
His lawyer, Ahmed Qenawy, said the 71-year-old journalist was arrested over a social media post criticizing a construction project on Egypt’s North Coast. Khattab, who has chronic illnesses and a history of heart surgery, is in urgent need of medical attention.
“There is no justification for keeping him locked up,” Qenawy told Al Manassa. “He can cover his own treatment costs if released. But the damage has already been severe—one of his daughters has delayed her wedding for two years, waiting for him to come home.”
Khattab retired from journalism seven years ago, after working at Al-Wafd, Al-Dostor, and Rosa El-Youssef.
Egyptian criminal procedures code caps pretrial detention at six months for misdemeanors, 18 months for felonies, and two years for crimes punishable by life imprisonment or death (Art. 143). Khattab has now spent 15 months behind bars without being referred to trial.
Egypt remains one of the world’s worst offenders in jailing journalists. As of last year, 24 journalists were imprisoned, including Al Manassa cartoonist Ashraf Omar, who was forcibly taken from his home on 22 July 2024 and remains in pretrial detention on charges nearly identical to Khattab’s.
Rights groups have repeatedly condemned the state’s use of pretrial detention as a tool of punishment, targeting journalists, lawyers, and dissidents under the guise of national security.
