Article 93 of the Egyptian Constitution states that Egypt “is committed to the agreements, covenants and international conventions of human rights” that it has ratified. Such ratified international instruments “have the force of law after publication in accordance with the specified circumstances“.

Egypt signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (the “ICCPR“) on 4 August 1967 and ratified the treaty on 14 January 1982. This treaty aims to protect civil rights and contains provisions that prohibit discrimination on the grounds of sex, colour and religion. Whilst these provisions do not expressly include a reference to sexual orientation, in Toonen v Australia (1994) the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Committee concluded that the prohibition against discrimination on grounds of “sex” included at Article 26 of the ICCPR also prohibited discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. 

Despite its ratification of the ICCPR, and its Constitutional commitments with regards to international human rights instruments, Egypt has a history of opposing international calls to implement domestic protections of LGBTQI+ rights. For example, during its third Universal Periodic Review by the UN Humans Rights Council in 2020, Egypt rejected recommendations from several states to end arrests and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The Egyptian government stated that it does not recognise the terms “sexual orientation” and “gender identity”. 

Egypt is also a member of the African Union and signed the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the “ACHPR“) on 16 November 1981. The ACHPR guarantees the principles of non-discrimination and equality before the law; the rights to life, dignity and physical integrity; protection against cruel, degrading or inhuman treatment or punishment; and the right to a fair hearing before competent national courts. However, it has been subject to criticism for not containing an express right to privacy, which has traditionally been an important source for the development of human rights protections for LGBTQI+ individuals. Further, the monitoring body of the ACHPR recently stated in its Final Communiqué that “sexual orientation” was not an “expressly recognised right” in the ACHPR. It is therefore not clear the extent to which the ACHPR will form a basis for the protection of LGBTQI+ rights. 

Egypt’s implementation of international legal frameworks

While Egypt is a party to and has ratified several international legal frameworks, the implementation of its international legal commitments into domestic law has been inconsistent. For example, Article 96 of the Egyptian Constitution aligns with the right of individuals to a fair trial as set out in Article 14 of the ICCPR. Similarly, Article 75 of the Egyptian Constitution protects an individual’s right to freely establish associations, aligning with the right to freedom of association under Article 10 of the African Charter. However, there remain a number of areas where domestic law is yet to align with Egypt’s international legal obligations, notably in respect of the lack of any statutory protections for LGBTQI+ individuals. Further, Egypt has actively resisted interpretations of international law that could be viewed as favourable to LGBTQI+ individuals, denying that sexuality and gender identity is protected under any international human rights treaties. For instance, during the 71st Session of the UN General Assembly held in November 2016, Egypt voted in favour of a proposal to block the allocation of financial resources to the Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. 

Egypt’s response to UN experts when challenged on treatment of LGBTQI+ individuals

On 1 March 2023, the UN Human Rights Committee pointed out to an Egyptian delegation that whilst Egyptian legislation did not punish consensual homosexual activity, prohibitions against acts inciting “debauchery” were still enforced by the Egypt Prostitution Law which, in effect, criminalised homosexual activity. The UN experts highlighted that, on one occasion, 28 men had been convicted of debauchery and underwent forced anal examinations by the police. The Egyptian delegation responded by explaining that Egyptian legislation did not criminalise consensual sexual relationships between adults and that the 28 men were arrested for causing disturbance in their neighbourhood by engaging in fighting and drug use. This was at odds with the information held by the UN experts, which indicated that the men had been arrested on the basis of their sexual orientation. According to UN sources, the sole charge against these men was that of “debauchery”. 

Sharia law

Egyptian law directly incorporates Sharia law into its legal system. The preamble to the Egyptian Constitution and Article 2 state that “the principles of Islamic Sharia are the principle source of legislation” and that “the reference to interpretation thereof is the relevant texts in the collected rulings of the Supreme Constitutional Court“.     

Sharia law is generally agreed to encompass a body of texts which include, at least, the Qur’an and the sayings of the Prophet (hadith). Such texts do not explicitly reference nor prohibit same-sex relations. However, many Muslim scholars point to the story of Lot and the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to argue that acts of sodomy are forbidden by Sharia.

Same-sex sexual activity

There is no provision of Egyptian law which expressly criminalises or prohibits same-sex sexual acts or relations. However, certain provisions of Egyptian law relating to public morals and debauchery have been used to target members of the LGBTQI+ community and de-facto criminalise same-sex relations. Specifically, the following two provisions have been routinely applied to target members of the LGBTQI+ community: 

• Article 9(c) of Law No. 10 of 1961 on the Combating of Prostitution (“Egypt Prostitution Law”), which states that “whoever habitually engages in debauchery or prostitution” is punishable “by imprisonment for a period of not less than three months and not exceeding three years.” Additionally, Article 9 provides that an individual found guilty pursuant to Article 9(c) may be sent for a “medical examination“. Following such a medical examination, if the individual is found to carry an “infectious venereal disease“, they may be detained in a “therapeutic institute” pending treatment and, following completion of the prison sentence, may be placed in a “special reformatory” (except for repeat offenders, who are required to be placed in such special reformatory) for a period of up to three years until the administrative authority orders their release. 
• Article 278 of Law No. 58 of 1937 (“Egyptian Penal Code“), which states that “whoever commits in public a scandalous act against pudency shall be punished with detention for a period not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding three hundred pounds.”

The Egyptian legal research institute Cairo 52 published an article, which reports that the Economic Court in Alexandria has, in multiple rulings, interpreted Article 25 of Egypt’s Law No. 175 of 2018 regarding cybercrimes (“Egypt Cybercrimes Law“) as criminalising homosexuality. Article 25 states that violating social and family values is punishable by a minimum of six months imprisonment and a fine ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 Egyptian Pounds. The Economic Court’s interpretation relies on a reading of Article 25 in conjunction with Article 9(c) of the Egypt Prostitution Law). According to the Cairo 52 article, judges have now come to interpret Article 25 as explicitly criminalising homosexual acts without the need to establish the elements of debauchery contained in the Egypt Prostitution Law. 

Marriage

Marriages involving two persons of the same sex are not recognised under Egyptian law. However, it has been reported that LGBTQI+ individuals perform symbolic same-sex marriage ceremonies. If discovered, however, these ceremonies can carry legal consequences. In November 2014, it was reported that eight men were arrested for attending a “marriage like ceremony” on the Nile after a video of the event was posted online showing two men kissing and exchanging rings. Each of the eight individuals were sentenced to three years in prison for “spreading indecent images and inciting debauchery“. This is notwithstanding a statement from a Ministry of Justice, which described the case as baseless and that “medical tests” (i.e. anal examinations) “showed that the eight defendants have not practiced homosexuality“. An Egyptian appeal court later reduced the sentences to one year each.

Discrimination 

The Egyptian Constitution enshrines the principle of equality and equal opportunity for all its citizens. Specifically, Article 4 states that Egyptian national unity “is based on the principle of equality, justice and equal opportunity between citizens”, and Article 9 requires the state to ensure “equal opportunity for all citizens without discrimination“. However, in practice, members of the LGBTQI+ community appear to be routinely discriminated against in law enforcement, media, healthcare and education, as set out in detail in the following sections. 

Law enforcement

Individuals from the LGBTQI+ community in Egypt have reportedly been targeted by members of law enforcement. This includes digital targeting, whereby members of law enforcement create fake accounts on social media platforms and dating apps such as Grindr or Tinder. It has been common practice for police to use such fake accounts to talk to people until they agree to go on a date. The individual will then be arrested. The possession of condoms or large sums of cash can be used as evidence of debauchery.

After arresting men suspected of being members of the LGBTQI+ community, it is      commonplace in Egypt for prosecutors to order an anal examination to be undertaken by the Forensic Medicine Authority (a division of the Ministry of Justice) in order to “verify” whether the individual has engaged in homosexual intercourse.

Treatment in the media

Provisions of Egyptian law have been used to censor the presence of, and dialogue relating to, the LGBTQI+ community, with these matters considered to be contrary to “public morals”. For example, Article 178 of the Egyptian Penal Code states: 

“Whoever makes or holds, for the purpose of trade, distribution, leasing, pasting or displaying printed matter, manuscripts, drawings, advertisements, carved or engraved pictures, manual or photographic drawings, symbolic signs or other objects or pictures in general, if they are against public morals, shall be punished with detention for a period not exceeding two years and a fine of not less than five thousand pounds and not exceeding ten thousand pounds or either penalty.”     

Article 178 bis of the Egyptian Penal Code provides that newspaper editors and publishers can be held liable for printing material that is “against public morals” under Article 178, as can any distributors, importers, exporters or middlemen.

In 2017, the Egyptian Supreme Council for Media Regulation ordered a ban on all forms of support for the LGBTQI+ community on all media outlets, including any forms of sympathy towards the LGBTQI+ community. In doing so, the Supreme Council released a statement calling homosexuality a “shameful disease“, which should not be promoted through Egyptian media. The statement said that members of the LGBTQI+ community are only allowed to appear in the media to show repentance and display homosexuality as an unacceptable behaviour     .

Access to healthcare and gender re-assignment

During the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the LGBTQI+ community living with HIV in Egypt struggled to access HIV-related healthcare, largely due to the fact that the three hospitals in which HIV patients could obtain their medication were used as coronavirus testing centres. HIV patients were also subject to stigma and verbal assaults in health centres and, in some cases, were unable to obtain their medication. 

Additionally, a report written by Bedaaya, the Arab Network for Knowledge about Human Rights, and the Alliance of Queer Egyptian Organisations detailed the challenges transgender people in Egypt face in obtaining access to hormone therapy, with pharmacies often resisting or refusing to dispense such products.

Intersex individuals also face hardships in this regard. While Egypt recognises intersexuality as a “disorder of sexual development“, it does not have any specialised centres for intersexuality.

Whilst there exists a process for obtaining gender re-assignment surgery in Egypt, this involves many time-consuming steps. First an application must be made to the Sex Re-assignment Committee at the National Doctors Syndicate. This will be reviewed by urologists, gynaecologists and a psychotherapist (which will take no less than two years). The final decision regarding approval for gender re-assignment surgery is taken by a seven-member committee made up of doctors and one representative of the religious institution of Al Azhar. If approval is obtained, then an individual may have a gender re-assignment surgery, either at a public hospital at the state’s expense or at a private hospital, and will also be able to acquire all documents needed to amend their sex on their official documents. However, in practice, it is rare for approval to be obtained – indeed, it is reported that the committee has not convened for many years due to the representative from Al Azhar refusing to stand.

Education

In September 2022, the New Arab reported that the Egyptian Education Ministry ordered the integration of sexual education, sexual harassment and sexual violence into basic education curricula in order to protect children from engaging in “deviant” sexual behaviour, which the Egyptian government considers includes homosexuality.

In April 2024, the New Arab reported that the Egypt National Council for Childhood and Motherhood filed a complaint before the Egyptian prosecutor-general against a Cairo-based German school, accusing it of promoting homosexuality to school children. The complaint stated that the school encouraged children to accept and normalise same-sex relations and taught them that people should be free to choose their partners even if they were of the same sex. In response to this complaint, the Egyptian Minister of Education formed a committee of international education experts and ministry officials to investigate the allegations. On 19 May 2024, it was reported that the Administrative Court held a hearing to consider the revocation of the school’s licence following this complaint.

Employment Discrimination      

While there is no legal restriction for the employment of LGBTQI+ individuals, individuals who are detained, arrested or questioned on morality charges will usually have this remain on their record for up to three years, and may consequently face challenges in securing employment. This may also restrict their ability to access basic services, and subject individuals to further arbitrary arrests and discrimination.