{"id":16420,"date":"2026-09-24T16:55:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-24T14:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=16420"},"modified":"2026-10-24T14:54:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T12:54:49","slug":"warraq-builders-terrorism-charges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/warraq-builders-terrorism-charges\/","title":{"rendered":"Selling Cement to Warraq Residents Is Now a Terrorism Charge. 19 Traders Have Been in Jail Since December"},"content":{"rendered":"<p dir=\"ltr\">The Second Terrorism Circuit, convened at the Badr Rehabilitation and Reform Centre, on 14 September renewed the detention of 19 building materials traders in Qalyubia Governorate for 45 days pending <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ecrf.net\/posts\/pfbid02n7XpErZT9tviooPzCySGX5RiURBnEFGeh3ACY6pazgGtR4SnRJVeLs8ffRM9HRnzl\">Case<\/a> No. 10709 of 2025, Supreme State Security.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The group faces charges of joining a terrorist group, unlawful assembly and spreading false news, in a case that rights organisations, lawyers and the defendants&#8217; relatives link to the sale of cement, bricks and sand to residents of Warraq Island, into which the authorities have barred the entry of building materials since 2017.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Security forces had arrested the traders from their homes in batches in the second half of December 2025, then brought them before the Supreme State Security Prosecution in the Fifth Settlement between 23 and 25 December, after a number of them had been subjected, according to what the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ecrf.net\/posts\/%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF-%D8%AD%D8%A8%D8%B3-19-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%88%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B2%D8%A7%D8%B9-%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A3%D9%87%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A-%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1\/1405263878312112\/\">said<\/a>, to varying periods of enforced disappearance before appearing before the investigating authorities.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In a <a href=\"https:\/\/eipr.org\/press\/2026\/02\/%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%A5%D8%B7%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%86%D9%8A-%D8%B6%D8%AF-%D8%B3%D9%83%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82-%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%AF%D8%AF-%D8%AD%D8%A8%D8%B3-%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%88%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D8%AA%D9%87%D9%85\">statement<\/a> it published last February, the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) said that forces affiliated with the Interior Ministry&#8217;s National Security Sector arrested the group from several areas of Qalyubia, in violent raids on homes accompanied by the terrorising of women and children from the families of those arrested, then took them to the National Security headquarters in Shubra El-Kheima, where they were held unlawfully and forcibly disappeared for days before being brought before the prosecution. According to the initiative, the prosecution charged the traders and workers with joining and financing a terrorist group, taking part in an unlawful assembly, misusing social media, spreading false news, and using electronic means to promote the commission of terrorist crimes, without evidence of any unlawful activity, and it added that those arrested are licensed traders who hold commercial registers and legal warehouses, and have close ties and a known history in their social circles.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ecrf.net\/posts\/%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF-%D8%AD%D8%A8%D8%B3-19-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%AA%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%85%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%88%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B2%D8%A7%D8%B9-%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A3%D9%87%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A-%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1\/1405263878312112\/\">list<\/a> of the 19 traders detained pending the case includes: Hammam Mohamed Hammam Mohamed, Mohamed Ali Mohamed Ahmed El-Roby, Mounir Rabie Ali Ali El-Barmawy, Ramadan Mahmoud Shafei Abdel Aziz, Ibrahim Ali Ibrahim Ali Zidan, Mohamed Kamal Mohamed Mersal, Mohamed Fawzy Abbas Nagdy, Hamdy Tammam Mohamed Tayea, Yassin Mohamed Mohamed, Maghraby Abdel Hamid Hawash, Okasha Ali Ahmed Abdel Aal, Ashraf Mohamed Shalaby Kaseb, Ahmed Mohamed Ezzat Ahmed, Ayman Sayed Lotfy Sayed Abu El-Enein, Ahmed Salah Afifi El-Sayed Abu El-Enein, Saeed Fares Ramadan Sayed, Atris Abdel Khaleq Atris Mohamed, Mahrous Kaseb Shalaby Kaseb, and Khaled Embaby Hassan Embaby.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative; width: 100%; max-width: 380px; margin: 0 auto; aspect-ratio: 267\/591;\"><iframe style=\"position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; border: none; overflow: hidden;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/video.php?height=476&amp;href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Freel%2F1210906463725866%2F&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=380&amp;t=0\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><br \/>\n<\/iframe><\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The ban on the entry of building materials to the island dates back to 2017, when the head of Warraq district, Mohamed Nour, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.almasryalyoum.com\/news\/details\/1147340\">said<\/a> that their entry was completely prohibited based on instructions from Giza Governorate, on the grounds that there were no building permits and that the island was not included in the detailed plan. With the state&#8217;s plan to replan the island and establish &#8220;New Warraq City&#8221;, the ban continued and became <a href=\"https:\/\/revsoc.me\/politics\/52946\/\">one<\/a> of the recurring files of friction between residents and the authorities. Residents of the island said, in <a href=\"https:\/\/storage.googleapis.com\/qurium\/zawia3.com\/warraq-island-egypt.html\">earlier documentation<\/a> by Zawia3, that the restrictions were not limited to preventing new construction, but prevented them from bringing in what was needed to restore and maintain their homes, while government bodies justify the measures by preventing unlicensed construction and preserving the land allocated for the development project.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In September 2024, security forces <a href=\"https:\/\/manassa.news\/news\/20000\">prevented<\/a> the entry of building materials via the ferries, which led to congestion and tension, and rights organisations, among them the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms, recorded incidents they described as violations, including arrests and excessive use of force. In response, the Governor of Giza and officials at the Ministry of Housing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/EgyptianCabinet\/posts\/%D8%B1%D8%A6%D9%8A%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B2%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%8A%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%88%D9%82%D9%81-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%86%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%B0%D9%8A-%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%AA%D8%B7%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84\/1143824984454587\/\">said<\/a> that the island&#8217;s development project comes within a national plan to develop the Nile islands, and that the state is committed to providing alternative units and fair compensation and does not seek forced displacement, and the Cabinet also issued a <a href=\"https:\/\/sis.gov.eg\/Story\/297942\/%D8%B1%D8%A6%D9%8A%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B2%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%8A%D8%AA%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%88%D9%82%D9%81-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%86%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%B0%D9%8A-%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%AA%D8%B7%D9%88%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF-%D8%A8%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82?lang=ar\">statement<\/a> in November 2024 stating that &#8220;the state does not confiscate anyone&#8217;s property, but it applies the law to violators&#8221;.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"PZtJ02Yso8\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/warak\/\">Zawia3 Reveals Use of Live Bullets Against Civilians on Al-Warraq Island<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cZawia3 Reveals Use of Live Bullets Against Civilians on Al-Warraq Island\u201d \u2014 \u0632\u0627\u0648\u064a\u0629 \u062b\u0627\u0644\u062b\u0629\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/warak\/embed\/#?secret=cHEAIlxhMk#?secret=PZtJ02Yso8\" data-secret=\"PZtJ02Yso8\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 dir=\"ltr\">From Cement and Bricks to a &#8220;Terrorist Group&#8221;<\/h1>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Lawyer Mohamed Abdel Galil, a resident of Warraq Island, tells Zawia3 that the traders are all from outside the island, from Giza and Qalyubia governorates, and that they used to sell cement, sand, gravel, bricks and some home maintenance supplies to a number of its residents, and that they were arrested from their homes because of this activity.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">He points out that the case brought against them includes charges of &#8220;overthrowing the system of government&#8221; and &#8220;joining a banned group&#8221; alongside other charges, and he considers them &#8220;untrue&#8221; and completely removed from the nature of the activity they were engaged in, trading in building materials.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Abdel Galil says that the island&#8217;s lawyers did not take on the defence of the defendants in this case, and that had they done so they would have provided them with legal assistance free of charge and linked the case to the Warraq Island file, suggesting that the defendants feared this link lest it drag them into a bigger case, a fear he considers misplaced, because cases connected to the island&#8217;s residents could, in previous instances, be brought to an end through the pressure and demands of lawyers and residents.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Abdel Galil reveals another case concerning four young men from the island, Mohamed Emad, Adham Sabry, Ahmed Sabry and Ibrahim Sharaf El-Din, and says that they used to obtain building materials in order to sell them, and that the State Security Criminal Court sentenced each of them to ten years in prison about three days before he spoke to Zawia3. He believes that these cases have come to be treated as criminal cases even though their nature, from his point of view, goes beyond the criminal framework, and he says: &#8220;Our cases are not criminal at all&#8221;, since in his assessment they are of a political nature placed in a criminal framework, which pushed residents and lawyers to deal with them according to this framework in an effort to end them and get their sons out of prison.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Abdel Galil describes the four young men as &#8220;extremely simple people&#8221;, and says that what they did was limited to obtaining building materials and selling them to earn their living and support themselves, estimating their ages at no more than thirty, some of them in their twenties, and warning of the effect of long sentences on their future; whoever is sentenced at thirty to ten years in prison comes out having reached forty, and long years of these young men&#8217;s lives and futures are at risk of being lost.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In the same context, human rights lawyer Maha Ahmed tells Zawia3 that &#8220;commercial dealings with the residents of Warraq Island cannot, in and of themselves, be a reason for detention or a terrorism charge&#8221;, stressing that any charge must be based on specific acts and evidence relating to each defendant individually, while guaranteeing his right to a defence and to undergo fair trial procedures.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">She adds that the continued detention of the traders calls for a review of its reasons, and that the principle is to release them unless there are serious and specific legal justifications that require their continued detention, and she says: &#8220;Punishing traders merely for selling building materials to the people of Warraq is unacceptable, because commercial dealings with the island&#8217;s residents are not a crime in themselves, and liability may not be built on the identity of the people the traders deal with.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Maha Ahmed links the case to the restrictions imposed for years on the entry of building materials to the island, and believes that these restrictions &#8220;affect the residents&#8217; ability to maintain their homes and improve their housing conditions, and increase the pressure on them amid the ongoing dispute over the island&#8217;s future&#8221;. She rejects forced eviction and calls for the island to be developed with the participation of its residents in a way that preserves their right to housing and to remain, since &#8220;the detention of the traders cannot be viewed in isolation from the wider Warraq crisis, and the residents&#8217; demands to participate in determining the island&#8217;s future and to guarantee their right to housing and not to be forcibly displaced&#8221;.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"qquo8p7uPD\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/negaila\/\">Women Detained, Youths Executed: Unfolding the Nageela Tragedy in Matrouh<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cWomen Detained, Youths Executed: Unfolding the Nageela Tragedy in Matrouh\u201d \u2014 \u0632\u0627\u0648\u064a\u0629 \u062b\u0627\u0644\u062b\u0629\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/negaila\/embed\/#?secret=r3cVJ6Cagd#?secret=qquo8p7uPD\" data-secret=\"qquo8p7uPD\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 dir=\"ltr\">What the Traders&#8217; Relatives and the Island&#8217;s Residents Recount<\/h1>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In an effort to trace the circumstances of the case, Zawia3 contacted a number of relatives of the arrested traders, and residents of the island who have followed the file since its beginning, to establish the nature of the defendants&#8217; activity, the circumstances that preceded their arrest and where their legal situation now stands.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">One of the residents, among those who have followed the case since its beginning, says that the traders arrested are 19 people, most of them from Qalyubia Governorate, some of them from the areas of Basous, Abu El-Ghait, El-Qanater, El-Farnawany, Abu El-Menga and El-Sharqawiya, and that their activity focused on selling sand, crushed stone, cement and bricks to the island&#8217;s residents, and they were surprised to be included in a case that includes charges of joining a terrorist group and overthrowing the system of government alongside other charges, which he considers &#8220;fabricated&#8221;, since the traders, in his words, did not commit any crime and their activity did not go beyond trading in building materials. He also points out that the case included a charge of violating the Prime Minister&#8217;s decision concerning the ban on the entry of building materials to Warraq Island, asking how traders who live outside the island can be held responsible for this decision as long as their role was limited to selling the materials to those of its residents who requested them.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Another account that Zawia3 obtained from one of the island&#8217;s residents reveals the presence of elderly people among those arrested, among them the trader Ramadan Shafei, and the source says that Shafei is over sixty years old and suffers from severe excess weight that makes his movement and transfer extremely difficult, and that these health conditions did not prevent the continuation of the &#8220;arbitrary&#8221; judicial proceedings against him.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The residents&#8217; accounts were not limited to the traders in the latest case; one of them speaks of being personally pursued in a case connected to the trade in building materials, and says that he was sentenced to 25 years in prison over charges connected to trading in crushed stone and sand, and that the case is still ongoing, but he refuses to disclose its number because he faces security threats.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"PMoGEu3iTc\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/hekma-2\/\">Ras El-Hekma Residents Confront Demolitions and Disputed Compensation<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cRas El-Hekma Residents Confront Demolitions and Disputed Compensation\u201d \u2014 \u0632\u0627\u0648\u064a\u0629 \u062b\u0627\u0644\u062b\u0629\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/hekma-2\/embed\/#?secret=ITNawCHPqg#?secret=PMoGEu3iTc\" data-secret=\"PMoGEu3iTc\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h1 dir=\"ltr\">The Warraq Crisis<\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The traders&#8217; case comes in the context of a long-running dispute between the island&#8217;s residents and the state, whose chapters were renewed last August; on the second of the month, clashes <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/almanassanews\/posts\/%D9%84%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AB%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D8%B4%D8%AA%D8%A8%D9%83%D8%AA-%D9%82%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%B9-%D8%B9%D8%B4%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A3%D9%87%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A-%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82-%D8%A3%D9%85%D8%B3-%D8%A7%D9%84\/1574016891402952\/\">broke out<\/a> near the El-Qalali ferry after residents objected to the measures restricting the entry of building materials, leaving at least two people injured, then they were renewed the following day after the car of one of the residents was searched for building materials. The crisis developed into a <a href=\"https:\/\/manassa.news\/news\/33366\">sit-in<\/a> demanding that the materials be allowed in and that services be improved, which was suspended after negotiations with security leaders and promises to put in place a mechanism to regulate entry.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">However, the New Warraq Island Development Authority <a href=\"https:\/\/mhuc.gov.eg\/%D9%86%D9%81%D9%89_%D8%AC%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%B2_%D8%AA%D9%86%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%A9_%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF%D8%A9_%D9%85%D8%A7_%D8%AA%D9%85_%D8%AA%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%88%D9%84%D9%87_%D8%A8%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%B6_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%B9_%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B5%D9%81%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%AA_%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%87%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9_%D8%A8%D8%B4%D8%A3%D9%86_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%AD_%D8%A8%D9%85%D8%B1%D9%88%D8%B1_%D9%85%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AF_%D8%A3%D9%88_%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%AA%D9%84%D8%B2%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%AA_%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A1_%D8%A5%D9%84%D9%89_%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9%D8%8C\/%D8%A8%D9%8A%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%AA_%D8%B5%D8%AD%D9%81%D9%8A%D8%A9\">denied<\/a> on 12 August that any building materials or supplies had been allowed through to the island, and said that the controls in force continue and that the government development projects are proceeding according to their announced plans, then it <a href=\"https:\/\/gate.ahram.org.eg\/News\/5887685.aspx\">announced<\/a> the continuation of the ban following protests organised by a number of residents, explaining that &#8220;no building materials have been allowed to pass into the island&#8221;. A section of the residents insists on remaining on the island and developing it while keeping their homes and land, as opposed to a government plan to replan it and evacuate the areas targeted by the project.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In the middle of the same month, hundreds of the island&#8217;s residents <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/reel\/1553933652320805\">organised<\/a> a protest in front of the headquarters of the city authority in objection to the disregard of demands they had submitted about a week earlier, and according to the participants, the authority closed its doors from the morning and no official came out to meet them, while security forces intensified their presence around the protest.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Residents say that the policy of restricting building materials in recent years has prevented them from restoring or rebuilding their homes, at a time when government construction continues inside the island, and that the ferries have turned into checkpoints to prevent the entry of bricks, sand and cement, so that any attempt at restoration has become a recurring source of friction with security.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Warraq <a href=\"https:\/\/aps.aucegypt.edu\/ar\/articles\/1427\/warraq-island-development-that-pushes-residents-out\">Island<\/a> is the largest of the Nile River&#8217;s islands by area, covering about 1,500 feddans according to the official account, of which about 1,200 feddans are high-quality agricultural land, and its residents, whom a study by the American University estimates at about 120,000 people, depend mainly on growing vegetables and fishing. However, the island&#8217;s area is the subject of varying estimates ranging between about 1,250 feddans and 1,835 feddans depending on the sources and accounts.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The roots of the crisis go back to 1998, when a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/story.php?story_fbid=960600842778420&amp;id=100064855383942&amp;rdid=gRMIk5bOOAELIac9\">decision<\/a> was issued designating Warraq Island a nature reserve, which raised residents&#8217; suspicions of an intention to evacuate it, then in 2001 a decision <a href=\"https:\/\/assafirarabi.com\/ar\/17252\/2017\/10\/05\/%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%AF%D9%81%D8%AA%D8%B1-%D8%A3%D8%AD%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84-%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82-%D9%87%D9%84-%D8%AA%D8%BA%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%A7\/\">was issued<\/a> by the Prime Minister subjecting the island to the State Property Law, and since then legal disputes between residents and the state began. Residents said, in <a href=\"https:\/\/storage.googleapis.com\/qurium\/zawia3.com\/al-warak.html\">earlier documentation<\/a> by Zawia3, that in 2002 they obtained a court ruling in their favour granting them ownership of land on the island. In 2010 the government announced the demarcation of the administrative boundaries of five governorates, among them Giza, including Warraq, and drew up a plan to develop the island, before matters calmed down for a few years following the overthrow of the regime of former President Hosni Mubarak (1981-2011).<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">On 7 June 2017, President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/matsda2sh\/posts\/-%D8%AA%D8%B5%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%85-%D9%85%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%B4%D8%B1-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A%D9%87-%D9%84%D9%88%D8%AC%D9%88-%D9%85%D9%88%D9%82%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B7%D9%86-%D9%88%D9%85%D9%83%D8%AA%D9%88%D8%A8-%D9%81%D9%8A%D9%87-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%B3%D9%8A-%D9%8A%D9%88%D9%82%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%81%D8%A7%D9%82%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%B6%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%B2%D9%84-%D8%B9\/418401862116197\/\">said<\/a>: &#8220;There is an island in the heart of the Nile River, its area exceeds 1,250 feddans, and I will not mention its name; slums have begun to spread inside it, while citizens have started building by squatting. If there are 50,000 houses, where will their waste be discharged? Into the Nile that we drink from?&#8221; He added: &#8220;These islands must be given priority in dealing with them&#8221;, and that the residents of those islands &#8220;were not granted the right to remain under any circumstances&#8221;, while in other cases the state allowed squatters to legalise their status in exchange for paying the value of the land.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In July of the same year the crisis <a href=\"https:\/\/manassa.news\/news\/18512\">escalated<\/a> when security forces attempted to carry out demolition orders based on the land being state property, and they were met with widespread popular resistance during which one of the residents died of his injuries. Since then the island has been subject to tight security surveillance, residents have organised sporadic protests, popular committees were formed to defend it, the hashtag (#Warraq_Is_Not_For_Sale) was launched, and residents refused to leave their homes or accept compensation because it is, in their assessment, below the actual value of the land and the location.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">In 2018 the government <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youm7.com\/story\/2018\/4\/18\/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D9%83%D9%88%D9%85%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%86-%D9%86%D9%82%D9%84-%D8%AA%D8%A8%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AC%D8%B2%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82-%D9%84%D9%87%D9%8A%D8%A6%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AC%D8%AA%D9%85%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%A8%D8%AF%D8%A1\/3750972\">announced<\/a> the transfer of the island&#8217;s file to the New Urban Communities Authority, which began buying land from residents at prices ranging between EGP 6,000 (about USD 124) and EGP 12,000 (about USD 248) per metre, after the Engineering Authority had finished building a corniche on the western bank. The state pressed ahead with these measures as part of a comprehensive development of the island, while residents say they were not involved in a clear plan.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The authorities, on the other hand, rely on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youm7.com\/story\/2024\/12\/9\/%D9%86%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%B1-%D9%86%D8%B5-%D9%82%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%88%D9%86-%D9%82%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%AF-%D9%88%D8%A5%D8%AC%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A1%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%B1%D9%81-%D9%81%D9%89-%D8%A3%D9%85%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%83-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%AF\/6805727\">Law<\/a> No. 7 of 1991 on the State&#8217;s Private Property, and Law No. 144 of 2017 on legalising squatting, which observers regard as a basis for eviction if residents do not legalise their status according to the state&#8217;s procedures, while residents believe that the two laws did not take into account the island&#8217;s particularity as the permanent home of deep-rooted families, and many of them say they <a href=\"https:\/\/ar.globalvoices.org\/2024\/11\/08\/89521\/\">hold<\/a> notarised sale and purchase contracts dating back to the 1940s, in addition to customary deeds and registered contracts, which makes ownership the subject of a legal dispute.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">According to published <a href=\"https:\/\/egy-map.com\/project\/%D9%85%D8%B4%D8%B1%D9%88%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%85%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%86%D8%A9-%D8%AD%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%B3\">maps<\/a> attributed to the Armed Forces Engineering Authority, the island&#8217;s development project includes a major investment zone referred to as &#8220;Horus City&#8221;, comprising residential towers, hotels and a business district, while the State Information Service <a href=\"https:\/\/alayyam.info\/news\/9443C87J-GL58AG-6EE1\">described<\/a> the project as aiming to turn the island into a global commercial centre with an area of 1,516 feddans and a total cost of EGP 17.5 billion (about USD 362 million), including eight investment zones, a commercial zone, premium housing, a central park, a tourist marina, a riverfront, a cultural zone and a tourist corniche, without the name &#8220;Horus&#8221; appearing in official statements or announced details on the resettlement of residents. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.elwatannews.com\/news\/details\/6217828\">El-Watan<\/a> newspaper and others published the same maps, and it is on them that residents&#8217; suspicions rest that the aim is to turn the island into a large real estate project.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The case of the 19 traders lies at the heart of the most recurrent file in this dispute: the ban on the entry of building materials to the island since 2017, the successive frictions between residents and the authorities that followed, and then the extension of the ban&#8217;s effects to traders from outside the island who have no link to it, according to their lawyers and relatives, other than selling bricks and cement to its residents. The 14 September decision expires after 45 days, when the group will return before the same circuit in Badr: either a new renewal, or the release that Maha Ahmed considers &#8220;the principle&#8221;.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>19 licensed building materials traders from Qalyubia have been in detention since December 2025 on charges of joining a terrorist group, and what unites them, according to their lawyers and rights organisations, is selling bricks, cement and sand to residents of Warraq Island, while four young men from the island were each sentenced to ten years in prison for the same reason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":16413,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[390],"tags":[17750,17749,17742,17747,17745,17751,17743,17757,17746,17754,17752,17758,17755,17759,17748,17756,17357,17753,17744,17741],"kateb":[11853],"class_list":["post-16420","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-human-rights","tag-19-qalyubia-building-materials-traders-detained-terrorism-charges-warraq-island-december-2025","tag-egypt-anti-terrorism-law-misuse","tag-egypt-building-materials-ban","tag-egypt-construction-materials-arrest","tag-egypt-forced-eviction-nile-island","tag-egypt-state-security-arrests-licensed-traders-selling-cement-bricks-sand-warraq-residents","tag-egypt-state-security-traders-detained","tag-egypt-supreme-state-security-prosecution-case-10709-2025-warraq-island-traders","tag-egyptian-commission-rights-freedoms-warraq","tag-egyptian-initiative-personal-rights-traders-enforced-disappearance-shubra-al-kheima-national-security-headquarters","tag-four-warraq-island-youth-sentenced-10-years-prison-mohamed-emad-adham-sabry-ahmed-sabry-ibrahim-sharaf-el-din","tag-giza-governorate-new-urban-communities-authority-warraq-island-land-6000-12000-pounds-per-meter","tag-horus-city-warraq-island-development-project-17-5-billion-pounds-1516-feddans-armed-forces-engineering-authority","tag-maha-ahmed-rights-lawyer-commercial-dealings-warraq-not","tag-qalyubia-traders-imprisoned","tag-warraq-island-120000-residents-nile-largest-island-agricultural-land-forced-displacement","tag-warraq-island-2026","tag-warraq-island-building-materials-ban-since-2017-enforced-construction-prevented-residents","tag-warraq-island-development-crisis","tag-warraq-island-terrorism-charges","kateb-hisham-aref"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/\u0627\u0644\u0648\u0631\u0627\u0642.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16420","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=16420"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16420\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23888,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16420\/revisions\/23888"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16413"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16420"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16420"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16420"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=16420"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}