{"id":15512,"date":"2026-05-11T18:23:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T16:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=15512"},"modified":"2026-05-11T18:23:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T16:23:11","slug":"historic-cairo-evictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/historic-cairo-evictions\/","title":{"rendered":"Expropriation by Deception: Did the Government Mislead Historic Cairo’s Residents?"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In mid-April, the Egyptian General Survey Authority published<\/a> detailed maps of properties targeted for expropriation in Historic Cairo, along with the compensation values set under Cabinet Decision No. 39 of 2021<\/a>. No sooner had the maps circulated than cries of distress from residents in several areas renewed.<\/p>\n

Mohamed Abdel Aziz Gamil had a simple arrangement three years ago: vacate his inherited home in Atfit Al-Walida Basha in Darb Al-Lubbana temporarily, have it renovated at the Urban Development Fund’s expense, and return. The Fund paid him a furniture removal allowance and a year’s worth of rent. After one year, everything stopped.<\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “When I asked why the rent had stopped, I was asked to sign a new form stating that I was relinquishing my right to return to my home, in exchange for a replacement unit elsewhere and the sale of the land to the Fund. I refused.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Receipt for documents received from occupants of a property on Atfit Al-Walida Basha in the Darb Al-Lubbana area, issued in exchange for a rental allowance pending the completion of the property’s renovation<\/em><\/p>\n

He refused to sign, and the rent was cut off. Immediately afterward, the government issued an expropriation order for the property, citing the Fund’s description of it in an official memorandum<\/a> as “derelict vacant land.” But the documents tell a completely different story: utility receipts proving occupancy, and disbursement orders for a full year of rent.<\/p>\n

“The property is a five-story building on a main street,” he says. “It was not demolished, only renovated, and it does not lie in the path of a road or any public utility project.” The compensation offered to him is 3 million Egyptian pounds ($57,692). “That doesn’t even cover the price of a single apartment in the area, while the Fund offers its own units at far higher prices.”<\/p>\n

In his view, what is happening is expropriation without clear justification and without fair compensation. He has turned to the courts, filing Case No. 764 of 2025 before the New Cairo Partial Civil Court last year. “We are not against development, but we demand that the agreements made be honored and that our right to return to our homes, or to receive compensation proportionate to the value of our property, be respected.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"(1)<\/p>\n

(1) A copy from Case No. 764 of 2025. (2) The ruling issued in Case No. 535 of 2024, New Cairo Total Civil Government Court<\/em><\/p>\n

In the parallel Case No. 535 of 2024, in which Abdel Aziz named the Prime Minister and the Fund chairman as respondents, the New Cairo court ruled on March 25, 2025 to appoint an expert from the Ministry of Justice’s Experts Bureau to establish the property’s status and estimate the cost of its renovation, with reference to the Fund’s application form. The expert’s mandate includes determining the monthly rental allowance due, the amounts disbursed to the claimant, and the methods of disbursement.<\/p>\n

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A receipt issued by the Experts Bureau of the Ministry of Justice appointed in the case<\/em><\/p>\n

The roots of the crisis lie in the Fund’s classification of a number of plots in Darb Al-Lubbana, the Al-Mahjar subdivision, Al-Khalifa district, and the Southern Zone in Cairo Governorate as derelict land and rubbish dumps. The affected properties bear the following addresses: Nos. 3, 4, 5 Darb Rif’at; Nos. 5, 7 Darb Al-Lubbana; Nos. 1, 5, 10 Atfit Al-Walida Basha; Nos. 3, 9-11 Haret Al-Maristaan; Nos. 8, 10 Darb Al-Maristaan; Nos. 4, 6 Zuqaq Bab Al-Sir; Nos. 8, 8A Al-Mahjar Street; No. 16 Sikkat Al-Mahjar; No. 4 Atfit Al-Hakim; and No. 5 Haret Al-Hakim, with a total area of 1,962.32 square meters.<\/p>\n

Fund chairman Khaled Siddiq stated in the memorandum<\/a> submitted to the Cabinet in September 2024 that the initial compensation for these plots amounts to approximately 27 million Egyptian pounds ($519,231), and cited the inability to purchase the land through voluntary agreement on the grounds that no one had come forward with title documents. He requested that the plots be designated as a public utility as a precursor to their use in the project. He got what he asked for.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Explanatory memorandum from the Urban Development Fund addressed to the Prime Minister, September 25, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n

The government presents<\/a> the Historic Cairo development project as a national initiative to revive its neighborhoods and transform them into an open-air museum, while preserving architectural and cultural heritage, boosting tourism, and supporting traditional crafts. The initial cost is 30 billion Egyptian pounds ($576.9 million), with estimates<\/a> suggesting it could reach 70 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.35 billion) or 80 billion Egyptian pounds ($1.54 billion).<\/p>\n

The project<\/a> covers Al-Muizz Street and its surroundings, the area around Al-Hussein Mosque, Bab Zuweila and Haret Al-Rum, Darb Al-Lubbana, Al-Hakim Mosque and its vicinity, Al-Darb Al-Ahmar, Al-Gamaliya, Al-Khalifa district, and other areas within Islamic Cairo.<\/p>\n

Under the Survey Authority’s announcement<\/a> issued on April 14, stakeholders have the right to contest the information in the registers within fifteen days of the close of the public display period under Article 8 of the Law, and to appeal compensation assessments before the court of first instance within four months under Article 9 of Law No. 10 of 1990. The data becomes final if both deadlines pass without objection or appeal.<\/p>\n

The government considers<\/a> the expropriation project a matter of public utility, with direct-execution seizure of the plots permitted. This position draws on Presidential Decree No. 304 of 2024<\/a>, the decree establishing the Fund, No. 1779 of 2021<\/a>, and Cabinet Decision No. 3503 of 2022, which classified<\/a> the expropriation project as a public utility project.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Prime Ministerial Decision No. 3530 of 2024, published in the Official Gazette, Issue No. 48, November 28, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n

The Urban Development Fund did not respond to Zawia3’s request for comment on the facts reported here before this article’s publication.<\/p>\n

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Recommended reading:<\/strong> Development vs. Demolition: How Did the Government Sacrifice Its Citizens for Roads?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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Bearing the Burden of New Rent<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Mona Mohamed (a pseudonym) had been paying 10 Egyptian pounds ($0.19) a month in rent for her apartment on Sikkat Al-Mahjar in Al-Qala district, before the Fund came knocking in 2021 with an offer: vacate temporarily, the home will be renovated, and you can return. She left. Her family’s inherited property remained in the Fund’s hands.<\/p>\n

The Fund honored the rent for one year, then stopped. What she pays now is close to 4,000 Egyptian pounds ($77) a month.<\/p>\n

She tells Zawia3: “I was blindsided by the rent being cut off simply because I refused to sign a form stating that I was giving up my right to return to the apartment, which I regarded as a coercive measure to force me into permanent eviction.” The property was not abandoned as the Fund’s memorandum<\/a> stated, but had been occupied right up to the moment of evacuation. It was not demolished; it was renovated in the same architectural style.<\/p>\n

The dispute has been before the courts for a year and a half without resolution. Other residents in the area agreed to vacate and received no compensation. Some properties were re-occupied by new tenants while the Fund insisted on expropriating others, particularly those on main streets.<\/p>\n

Mona says: “I receive no rental allowance, no compensation, and I am not allowed to return to my family’s home even though its renovation is complete.”<\/p>\n

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A photograph showing the house before and during its renovation by the Urban Development Fund<\/em><\/p>\n

The renovation of Darb Al-Lubbana<\/a> is one of the flagship projects in the revival of Historic Cairo. The area lies at the foot of Saladin Citadel and is an integral part of the urban fabric of Fatimid and Mamluk Cairo. The project involved the complete reconstruction of 23 fully destroyed buildings and the completion of 15 others that were partially destroyed, under the supervision of the Urban Development Fund, which reports to the Prime Minister’s office.<\/p>\n

The Official Gazette published in Issue No. 48, dated November 28, 2024, detailed survey maps of the area (Darb Al-Lubbana, Sikkat Al-Mahjar, Al-Walida Basha Street) in Al-Khalifa subdivision, showing the boundaries of the expropriation area, the register of owners, and the areas of the expropriated properties.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Registry of owners and areas of expropriated properties and land<\/em><\/p>\n

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Recommended reading:<\/strong> Suez Homes: When Demolition Orders Become More Powerful Than a City’s Memory<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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Six Years of Delayed Handover<\/strong><\/h1>\n

In December 2020, more than 300 families were evacuated from the Al-Taibi area in Al-Sayyida Zeinab district for the construction of the “Al-Rawda 2” project, a continuation of “Al-Rawda 1” (formerly known as Tel Al-Aqarab) as part of the Historic Cairo development. The promise was unit handover within 18 months. The reality, as Ahmed Hussein Haqqi<\/strong>, one of the affected residents, confirms: six years have passed with no resettlement date.<\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3 that the area was not classified as a zone of extreme danger, but was cleared for the purpose of improving the urban landscape. The actual number of affected families stands at around 360, higher than official figures acknowledge, and none have been rehoused as of mid-2026, despite the project’s completion some time ago.<\/p>\n

The Fund attributes the delay to infrastructure problems, which Haqqi dismissed as unjustified, particularly given that the neighboring “Al-Rawda 1” project was completed and its units handed over in a shorter period. The Prime Minister visited the project in November 2025 and directed that units be handed over to eligible residents with prepaid meters. Nothing has changed since.<\/p>\n

“We receive a monthly rental allowance of no more than 1,200 Egyptian pounds ($23), recently raised by about 1,000 Egyptian pounds ($19),” he says, “but it cannot by any measure cover current rental prices, which range between 5,000 and 6,000 Egyptian pounds ($96 to $115) in neighboring areas.”<\/p>\n

The families have filed complaints and held protests, from Al-Sayyida Zeinab district to Cairo Governorate and all the way to the Prime Minister’s office, without being given a clear timeline. The delay is placing families under severe hardship, especially given their ties to their original neighborhood through schools and work. Their demand is singular: a declared and binding handover date rather than continued uncertainty.<\/p>\n

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The government says the “Rawdat Al-Sayyida 2” project<\/a> comprises 9 residential blocks providing 572 housing units and 30 commercial units, at a cost of 549 million Egyptian pounds ($10.6 million), earmarked for rehousing the area’s residents while preserving the Islamic architectural character. In November 2025, the Prime Minister inspected<\/a> the project and directed that units be delivered to eligible recipients with prepaid utility meters.<\/p>\n

Alexandria’s Tram: Development Moves Faster Than the Courts<\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

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The Flaws in How Expropriation Is Applied<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Ibrahim Ezzedine<\/strong>, director of policy at Diwan Al-Omran, sees in the project a recurring pattern: the absence of a clear, publicly announced plan before implementation, and insufficiently defined responsible parties. Researchers are forced to piece together information from multiple sources, which yields an incomplete picture, undermining transparency and the free flow of information.<\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3 that in projects of this kind, the norm should be making plans publicly available and guaranteeing consultation with residents, not treating them as passive recipients of decisions in which they have no say.<\/p>\n

“The expropriation mechanisms require presenting a complete chain of title going back to the original owner,” he says. “This is an unrealistic burden. Many residents do not have that documented history.” Those unable to prove ownership receive what is called “social compensation”: around 40,000 Egyptian pounds ($769) per room. “If a resident holds a formal contract from a previous owner, why are they being asked to prove a fifty-year chain of title?” These procedural complexities serve, in his view, to reduce the chances of establishing ownership and thereby lower the value of compensation.<\/p>\n

Yahya Shawkat<\/strong>, director of the Urban Observatory, agrees that the legal framework relies on what the Survey Authority recognizes as formal documentation, such as ownership deeds or lease contracts, placing the entire burden of proof on the occupant. In historic areas, where occupation has stretched over centuries without formal documentation, many residents are automatically reclassified as “occupiers” with no complete legal rights.<\/p>\n

He tells Zawia3: “This classification leads to the payment of discretionary compensation that neither reflects the property’s actual value nor covers the cost of securing adequate alternative housing.” He stresses the need for a more comprehensive approach that takes account of the nature of historical occupation, and insists that providing adequate alternative housing must be treated as an obligation, not a concession, in all eviction cases tied to development projects.<\/p>\n

Mohamed Abdel Aziz is still paying rent on a leased apartment while his renovated home on the main street sits locked. Mona has been waiting four years. Ahmed Hussein carries a complaint signed by 300 families with no resettlement date in sight. Historic Cairo is being beautified while its residents wait outside.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

360 families evacuated from Al-Sayyida Zeinab in 2020 were promised new homes in 18 months. Six years later, no resettlement date has been<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15500,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[410],"tags":[15190,15188,15192,15187,15191,15189,15186,15193,15185,15194],"kateb":[1550],"class_list":["post-15512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investigations-en","tag-al-rawda-2-project-cairo-housing","tag-al-sayyida-zeinab-forced-eviction","tag-cairo-islamic-district-demolition","tag-darb-al-lubbana-displacement-cairo","tag-egypt-eminent-domain-compensation","tag-egypt-historic-preservation-residents","tag-egypt-urban-development-fund-expropriation","tag-egypt-urban-renewal-forced-displacement","tag-historic-cairo-evictions","tag-zawia3-cairo-investigation","kateb-aya-yasser"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/\u0627\u0644\u0642\u0627\u0647\u0631\u0629-\u0627\u0644\u062a\u0627\u0631\u064a\u062e\u064a\u0629.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15512"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15512\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15513,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15512\/revisions\/15513"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15512"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=15512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}