Despite nearly two weeks passing since the killing of two young men, Youssef Eid Fadl Al-Sarhani and Farag Rabash Al-Fazari, in the village of Nagila, Matrouh Governorate, investigations have largely stalled. This has fueled growing anger among the victims’ families, the defense committee, and human rights organizations, amid increasing legal and popular calls to escalate action in pursuit of justice.
According to information obtained by Zawia3 from members of the defense committee and sources familiar with the investigation, the officer from the National Security Agency accused of killing the two young men has not yet appeared before the investigative authorities. Meanwhile, indirect pressure is reportedly being exerted on the families of the victims, particularly through community leaders selected to represent them before security and judicial bodies, urging them to either accept a settlement or accept blood money in exchange for de-escalation—an offer that all parties have firmly rejected.
Additionally, there have been calls to organize a general strike of shops from Salloum to Zawiyet Abdel Qader, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. midweek, as part of efforts to escalate popular pressure to achieve justice.
Two weeks ago, the two young men were killed by a National Security officer identified as (A. Sh.) after voluntarily surrendering themselves in an attempt to secure the release of four women among 23 detained without legal grounds. These women were being held to pressure a suspect—wanted for the killing of three police officers and drug trafficking—to turn himself in.
Despite the ongoing controversy surrounding the incident, no official body, including the Public Prosecution conducting the investigation or the Ministry of Interior as a principal party, has issued any statement except for a single announcement by the Ministry of Interior on April 12, just hours after the killings. That statement alleged that the two young men were killed during a confrontation with security forces, a claim strongly refuted by the residents of Matrouh, who presented conclusive evidence before the prosecution and in video testimonies documenting eyewitness accounts.
Don’t miss: Women Detained, Youths Executed: Unfolding the Nageela Tragedy in Matrouh
What’s New?
When asked this question, Heba Abdel-Rawaf, the spokesperson for the victims’ defense committee, confirmed to Zawia3 that there have been no significant developments. The investigation is proceeding at an extremely slow pace, inconsistent with the magnitude of the tragedy and the deep pain felt by the victims’ families and the people of Matrouh at large. Abdel-Rawaf added that the defense committee has decided to form a delegation to meet with the Public Prosecutor to request the appointment of an independent judge to investigate the case, considering this a positive step toward accelerating the investigation.
Meanwhile, Mamdouh Ragab Derbali—the head of the victims’ defense committee and former head of the Matrouh Bar Association—told Zawia3 that the lawyers’ delegation will meet the Public Prosecutor next Monday to present the case details, demand expedited procedures, and convey the collective demand of Matrouh’s citizens for swift justice.
Regarding the latest developments, Derbali stated: “There is a clear delay in the proceedings. We will meet the Public Prosecutor on Monday, and we intend to address all relevant authorities: the Public Prosecutor, the President of the Republic, the parliamentary councils, and sovereign bodies.” He added: “We are defending the rights of the people at large, as well as the state’s institutions. What happened is a crime outside the bounds of law.”
Derbali emphasized that the aim is to maintain unity and popular solidarity while warning against attempts by “defeatists” to undermine the case. He called on everyone to fully support the cause, stressing that despite the difficulty of the situation, the defense committee is determined to pursue the case and monitor the investigation until the very end.
Similarly, Mohamed Fattouh—a lawyer at the Alexandria Court of Appeal, familiar with the investigation process, and one of the lawyers standing in solidarity with the defense committee—told Zawia3 that there has been an extreme delay in holding the responsible parties accountable, despite more than twenty days having passed since the incident. “Until now, no legal action has been taken against the accused, despite all the necessary procedures involving the suspects and their families having been completed,” he said.
He added: “Legally, there has been no real action so far. In fact, the victims’ families submitted a formal complaint to the Public Prosecution about two weeks ago, accusing certain officers by name of killing their sons. The complaint was officially registered, and the families were heard by prosecutors, where they refuted the Ministry of Interior’s version of events.”
Fattouh pointed out that there has been significant mobilization from the Bar Association, which has called on all Egyptian lawyers to support the case and stand in solidarity with the families of the two slain young men.
He continued: “The role expected from the Bar Association is to defend people’s constitutional and legal rights. Accordingly, the Association has issued a call for all Egyptian lawyers to join the lawsuit, closely follow the case, and intervene to monitor the legal proceedings. If the case moves to court, it will fall under the jurisdiction of the Alexandria Criminal Court, and we will join as civil rights plaintiffs.”
Fattouh affirmed that from the very beginning, there has been a stark delay by the Public Prosecution and clear obstruction in the proceedings. He noted that the lawyers had to wait a very long time—from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.—to submit the complaint, after which the victims’ families and witnesses provided their testimonies, clearly affirming that the two young men were killed by the accused officer.
He further added: “Subsequently, another complaint was filed by eyewitnesses—individuals present during the standoff between security forces and the victims’ families during the attempted surrender of the young men. These witnesses testified before prosecutors, identifying by name the officers who negotiated with them, and their accounts were supported by documented video evidence. Therefore, judicial action should have been initiated immediately following the submission of these complaints, but the reality remains: the delays persist. The Public Prosecution, as the representative of society, should have approached this case with the same seriousness and urgency shown by the lawyers standing with the victims.”
Don’t miss: Zawia3 Reveals Use of Live Bullets Against Civilians on Al-Warraq Island
Why Have the Forensic Reports Been Delayed?
According to information obtained by Zawia3, no official forensic reports have been issued so far, except for death certificates, which neither specified the cause of death nor the location of the incident. A circulated death certificate for one of the victims indicated that the cause of death was “under investigation” and listed the place of death as Matrouh General Hospital. This ambiguity sparked widespread controversy, prompting the Directorate of Health to publish an official clarification on its Facebook page.
The statement read: “The two deceased young men were transferred to Matrouh General Hospital by a government ambulance, where their bodies were placed in the morgue pursuant to a decision by the Public Prosecution on the evening of Thursday, April 10. A preliminary external examination of the bodies was conducted by the Health Inspector, and a full report on their injuries was prepared, after which the bodies were referred to the Forensic Medicine Authority in Alexandria, in accordance with the Public Prosecution’s directive.”
The statement explained that the standard legal procedure for issuing death certificates in cases involving criminal suspicion includes writing “under investigation” as the cause of death until the official forensic report is submitted to the Public Prosecution. It also clarified that the “place of death” mentioned in the death certificate refers to the location where the bodies were examined by the Health Inspector, not where the incident or fatal injuries actually occurred.
Additionally, lawyer Mohamed Fattouh confirmed in his remarks to Zawia3 that, as of yet, no final forensic report has been issued. Only a preliminary medical report has been released, which aligns with the narrative presented by the Ministry of Interior in its official statement claiming that the victims were attempting to flee during an alleged clash.
Fattouh explained that the preliminary medical report stated the cause of death as gunshot wounds. However, the awaited final forensic report is expected to provide much more detailed information, including the distance from which the bullets were fired, the direction and angle of the shots, whether the victims were fleeing or facing the shooters when they were shot, and the type of weapon used. He pointed out that the delay in issuing the final report is not unusual, given that such detailed forensic reports typically require up to 40 days to complete.
He continued:
“Parallel to this delay, a meeting was held last Thursday at the Matrouh Bar Association headquarters to discuss possible legal avenues for accelerating the proceedings. A visit to the Public Prosecution was initially scheduled for Saturday but has been postponed to next Monday.”
Don’t miss: Torture and Hanging: Mahmoud Asaad’s Death in Police Custody
Has the Accused Officer Appeared Before Investigators?
Our sources confirm that the National Security officer accused of killing the two young men — the same officer who received them from the intermediaries and promised no harm would come to them — has not yet appeared before the investigative authorities. No official charges have been brought against him, raising serious concerns and frustrations about the possibility of achieving justice, especially amid attempts to persuade the victims’ families to accept blood money or negotiate a settlement, which all parties have thus far rejected.
This is corroborated by lawyer Mohamed Fattouh, who stated:
“We need to distinguish between two things: the officers who filed the incident report are the same individuals who testified before the Public Prosecution, claiming they were attacked and had to fire in self-defense. Thus, they were treated as victims. However, legally, they are also suspects in the killing of the victims and are subject to investigation on this basis. These three officers gave their testimonies, but the National Security officer accused of the actual killings was not among them. In their statements, the three officers claimed that there was an exchange of fire with the victims — a narrative consistent with the Ministry of Interior’s version, although it has been thoroughly debunked.”
The Nageela incident in Matrouh erupted after escalating confrontations between security forces and the families of suspects. It began with the killing of three police officers during an attempt to arrest a fugitive. In response, security forces launched a campaign of arrests, detaining 23 women from the suspects’ families as “hostages” to pressure the fugitives to surrender — a practice widely criticized for violating the law. Amid this escalation, the two young men, Youssef Eid and Farag Rabash, voluntarily surrendered after mediation by the Sarhana tribe, but their fate turned tragic when they were extrajudicially executed, according to eyewitness accounts. The Ministry of Interior, however, claimed they died in an exchange of gunfire.
Zawia3 previously published exclusive testimonies from the people of Nageela detailing the events. One witness, speaking anonymously, described how security forces stormed homes at dawn, detaining approximately 23 women without legal justification to pressure suspects into surrendering. Nineteen were later released, while four remained in custody. In an effort to secure their release, the two young men surrendered as witnesses to the events, guaranteed safety — only to be unlawfully executed.
The incident sparked widespread outrage among Matrouh tribes, leading the Council of Chieftains and Elders to suspend cooperation with security agencies and demand an urgent meeting with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Meanwhile, the Egyptian Bar Association condemned the unlawful detention of women, citing violations of Article 280 of the Penal Code. Human rights organizations, such as the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), called on the Public Prosecutor and Minister of Justice to appoint an independent judge to investigate the killings.
Furthermore, fourteen human rights organizations issued a joint statement condemning the extrajudicial executions. They emphasized that the reported practices constitute crimes of unlawful execution, consistent with previous human rights violations documented in Egypt. They urged the Public Prosecutor to conduct an immediate and transparent investigation and warned that ignoring accountability would reinforce a culture of impunity among security forces in Marsa Matrouh Governorate, threatening the region’s social cohesion, known for its strong familial and tribal bonds.
Over the past decade, Egypt’s Ministry of Interior has faced repeated accusations of severe human rights abuses, according to reports by both international and local organizations. These include excessive use of force against protesters, resulting in hundreds of deaths, systematic torture in National Security headquarters, enforced disappearances affecting thousands, mass executions following unfair trials, and deteriorating prison conditions, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although the Ministry of Interior has issued reports claiming improvements in human rights practices through humanitarian initiatives and oversight of National Security personnel, documented violations have persisted. Rights organizations assert that these abuses have become systemic and widespread in the absence of effective accountability, significantly impacting fundamental freedoms and individual rights in Egypt over the past decade.
In a previous statement to Zawia3, Yasser Saad, a lawyer specializing in social and economic rights, said these practices “are not new but represent a return to old policies and the collapse of the rule of law.” He noted that the Ministry of Interior has long adopted such methods, dating back to before 2011, and while there was a slight decrease post-2013, especially in politically sensitive cases, the recent escalation is alarming.
He added:”The Ministry tends to resort to these methods when certain security elements believe they are above the law, that any act of abuse or violation is inconsequential as long as it is justified as law enforcement. This is extremely dangerous,” stressing that “what is happening constitutes a serious violation not only of the law but also of the regulations that the Minister of Interior claims to uphold within the framework of respecting human rights.”
Saad emphasized:
“This situation demands accountability — not just for the individuals who committed the abuses, but also for the Minister of Interior himself, as the highest authority responsible. We do not yet know whether the intended outcomes truly serve the state or society. What we do know is that these practices are clear violations that cannot be justified, and silence in the face of them is unacceptable.”
The case of Youssef Eid and Farag Rabash’s deaths in Nageela remains a battleground between justice and systemic delays in investigations, reflecting a broader failure to hold perpetrators accountable. Despite increasing demands from the victims’ families, the defense team, and human rights groups, the slow pace of the legal proceedings risks eroding public trust in the justice system. Ongoing public protests and calls for a general strike underscore the community’s deep anger. Meanwhile, legal and rights advocates continue to push for fair and transparent accountability. Without decisive action from the Public Prosecution, hopes for justice remain pinned on intervention at the highest levels — starting with the Public Prosecutor and possibly requiring presidential action to ensure that this crime does not become just another statistic in a long list of unchecked abuses.
