{"id":16947,"date":"2025-08-23T17:01:51","date_gmt":"2025-08-23T15:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=16947"},"modified":"2026-10-24T15:01:15","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:01:15","slug":"dar-el-salam-axis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/dar-el-salam-axis\/","title":{"rendered":"Sohag\u2019s Dar El-Salam Axis: From Family Homes to Reed Huts"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mohamed Sheiba&#8217;s family lived a stable life in their spacious home in the village of Awlad Khalaf, in Dar El-Salam district of Sohag Governorate, a house the father built in 2011 on an area of four qirats, plus a garden of two qirats, at a cost exceeding EGP 3.7 million. However, this property was removed two years ago, among 20 houses demolished to make way for the construction of the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.presidency.eg\/ar\/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D9%88%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%A9\/project-2552024-2\/#:~:text=%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%88%D8%B1%20%D8%A8%D8%B7%D9%88%D9%84%20%D9%A2%D9%A8%20%D9%83%D9%85%20%D9%88%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%B1%D8%B6%20%D9%A3%20%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%AA,%D9%8A%D8%B1%D8%A8%D8%B7%20%D9%85%D8%AD%D8%A7%D9%81%D8%B8%D8%A7%D8%AA%20%D9%82%D9%86%D8%A7%20%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%88%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%AC%20%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%83%D8%B2%20%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AD%D8%A7%D9%81%D8%B8%D8%A7%D8%AA%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D8%AC%D8%A7%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A9.\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dr Mohamed Sayed Tantawi Axis<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (Dar El-Salam), one of the national road projects linking Sohag and Qena governorates, 28 kilometres long and including a 1.3-kilometre bridge over the Nile, which aims to shorten the distance between the Nile axes and boost urban development, investment and trade between the two banks of the Nile.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although the government paid compensation to the residents at the time, twenty families, among them Mohamed&#8217;s family, made up of two parents, six sons and a daughter, found themselves facing acute hardship after losing their homes. It had become difficult to find alternative housing inside the village, whether to rent or to buy, because property prices had risen to levels exceeding the value of the compensation, in addition to the scarcity of land and houses, which families pass down generation after generation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At first, the family resorted to staying temporarily with a relative, but they were later forced to leave, so they built a reed hut on a plot of agricultural land they bought outside the village&#8217;s urban boundary. Since then, the family has lived in extremely harsh conditions, without water, electricity or sanitation, under a reed roof through which rain leaks in winter and which dust-laden winds sweep through, while the two young sons have been unable to complete their marriages because no suitable home is available.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mohamed tells Zawia3 that the value of the compensation in no way matches the real value of the land: a qirat in his village costs around EGP 750,000, while the compensation did not exceed EGP 200,000 per qirat. He adds that he was forced to buy new land at EGP 720,000 per qirat, which placed a heavy financial burden on him that has been reflected in his family&#8217;s life. He points out that the residents received promises from the Governor of Sohag, Major General Tarek El-Feki, that they would obtain building permits at alternative sites, which encouraged them to demolish their homes voluntarily. However, these promises have not been fulfilled to this day, even though two years have passed since the removals that began on 1 September 2023, leaving dozens of families without shelter, living in reed huts at the mercy of winter and rain.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sheiba points out that his repeated attempts with members of parliament have not led to any solutions, despite their full knowledge of the residents&#8217; circumstances and daily suffering. He affirms that all the official documents, maps and reports of the committees that inspected the alternative plots prove that official promises were made that have not been honoured to this day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to his account, the Governor of Sohag sent more than six exemption requests to the Minister of Agriculture to allow building on alternative plots located outside the urban boundary, but the Ministry of Agriculture is still holding up the issuance of the permits, while it was the Ministry of Transport that carried out the removal decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sheiba tells Zawia3: &#8220;The residents, among them families that include doctors, pharmacists, and university and secondary school students, have been living in inhumane conditions since the moment of the removal. We demand urgent intervention to resolve the crisis and to grant us an official exemption to build, because the officials&#8217; promises have not been fulfilled so far, and the continuation of this situation threatens the stability of hundreds of families in Dar El-Salam.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_13702\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13702\" style=\"width: 1364px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13702 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-e1755960488851.png\" alt=\"A picture (right) of a complaint the residents submitted to the Governor of Sohag, and another (left) addressed to the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister and a number of officials, both obtained by Zawia3.\" width=\"1364\" height=\"870\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-e1755960488851.png 1364w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-e1755960488851-300x191.png 300w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-e1755960488851-1024x653.png 1024w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1-e1755960488851-768x490.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1364px) 100vw, 1364px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-13702\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A picture (right) of a complaint the residents submitted to the Governor of Sohag, and another (left) addressed to the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister and a number of officials, both obtained by Zawia3.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For his part, his son <\/span><b>Osama Mohamed<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a university student and one of those affected by the Dar El-Salam Axis removals, explains that these removals ran contrary to what they had initially been told about being granted permits to build alternative homes; instead, the removal was carried out the very next day with the participation of army forces, and no subsequent promises were fulfilled. He affirms that his family&#8217;s house stood on an area of four qirats plus a two-qirat garden, and that the properties of his father and uncle that were removed covered about 33 qirats, including two villas, while the total compensation his family received did not exceed EGP 850,000, according to him, an amount he described as far lower than the actual construction cost, which exceeded EGP 3.7 million in 2011.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He tells Zawia3: &#8220;Property prices in the village are extremely high and it is hard to find houses up for sale; a house can cost as much as four million pounds. Moreover, the land that was expropriated was registered under official contracts, and we were not paid fair compensation for it or for the crops; they only compensated us for the buildings.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Osama believes that the local council and the Ministry of Agriculture are obstructing attempts to rebuild, as any attempt to lay new foundations is removed, even though the residents have offered to build homes at their own expense, noting that the residents&#8217; attempts to enlist the help of their constituency&#8217;s MPs in the House of Representatives have failed.<\/span><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_13704\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13704\" style=\"width: 1364px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-13704 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-e1755960553900.png\" alt=\"Two images obtained by &quot;Zawia3&quot; of two building permit applications submitted by citizens Ahmed Mahmoud Sheiba and Ashour Mohamed to the local authorities in Dar El-Salam\" width=\"1364\" height=\"710\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-e1755960553900.png 1364w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-e1755960553900-300x156.png 300w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-e1755960553900-1024x533.png 1024w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/2-e1755960553900-768x400.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1364px) 100vw, 1364px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-13704\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two images obtained by &#8220;Zawia3&#8221; of two building permit applications submitted by citizens Ahmed Mahmoud Sheiba and Ashour Mohamed to the local authorities in Dar El-Salam<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The same suffering is endured by the family of <\/span><b>Ashour Mohamed<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, who live in Nagaa El-Aqoula in the village of Awlad Touq Gharb in Dar El-Salam district, ever since their house, which was built on agricultural land, was removed as part of the expansion works for the Dar El-Salam Axis. At the time, the family received financial compensation that was not commensurate with property and land prices in the district, but they agreed to vacate because they had received a promise from the competent authorities that they would be granted a building permit on the same agricultural land.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Two years ago, Ashour began completing the procedures to obtain a building permit, and had the maps and plans stamped by all the relevant authorities; all that remained was the approval of the Agriculture Directorate, which stood in the way of his being granted the permit. At that time, the family was taken by surprise by the removal of their home and lost their shelter, while work on building the Dar El-Salam Axis was proceeding at full speed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ashour tells Zawia3 that the suffering of the residents affected by the Dar El-Salam Axis removals in Sohag Governorate goes back about two years, when construction work on the axis began and they were informed that their homes lay within the expansion zone. He affirms that the relevant authorities promised those affected compensation that included providing alternatives for the buildings that were removed, as well as a financial payment for the value of the structures, on condition that they submit ownership papers, land contracts and maps. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He explains that he and his family, like the rest of those affected, prepared the papers and maps, which were approved by several bodies including the Survey Authority, Drainage and Irrigation, Veterinary Medicine and Electricity, and were then sent to the Ministry of Agriculture in Cairo. He points out that the affected families spent large sums of money on the procedures throughout the period of work on the project, but after completing all the steps they were surprised by a ministerial decision halting the issuance of their permits.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He says: &#8220;Those affected are 17 families, among them 14 families from the village of Awlad Khalaf, in addition to 3 families from the village of El-Aqoula, including: Ashour Mohamed Moussa Mohamed, Khaled Kelib Mohamed Radwan and Younis Fawzy Moussa Mohamed&#8230; We are currently staying with our relatives while waiting for alternative housing to be provided, given how difficult it is to rent homes in the villages and hamlets because there is nothing on offer, and the high rents in the district towns.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_13706\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13706\" style=\"width: 1366px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13706\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3.png\" alt=\"Two images obtained by &quot;Zawia3&quot; of a complaint submitted by the wife of citizen Ashour Mohamed to the Cabinet, and the official response to it.\" width=\"1366\" height=\"852\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3.png 1366w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-300x187.png 300w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-1024x639.png 1024w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/3-768x479.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1366px) 100vw, 1366px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-13706\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two images obtained by &#8220;Zawia3&#8221; of a complaint submitted by the wife of citizen Ashour Mohamed to the Cabinet, and the official response to it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1438\" data-end=\"2048\">Ashour recalls that the compensation procedures began with the arrival of an expert from the Ministry of Agriculture to assess the price of a qirat, with the valuation carried out according to the land&#8217;s location without any intervention from the residents. He points out that his house, which stood on an area of one qirat, was supposed to be compensated with an area of 90 metres under the permit, but he received only EGP 60,000 as financial compensation for the mud (mud-brick) building that was removed. In return, the authorities expropriated two qirats and 13 sahms of his agricultural land, at a time when a qirat was valued at around EGP 120,000. Although the compensation for the agricultural land was relatively acceptable, the most prominent problem, according to him, lies in the failure to fulfil officials&#8217; promises to provide building permits free of charge.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2050\" data-end=\"2495\">He adds: &#8220;House prices have risen sharply within the villages&#8217; urban boundary; for example, a house on half a qirat costs up to 400,000 pounds, and if I wanted to build a house like my home that was removed, I would need about 800,000 pounds. We went to the governor, the city councils, the government complaints platform and the citizens&#8217; service at the Ministry of Agriculture, but without any real response. In fact, the complaints we submitted to the governor were referred to the Dar El-Salam district city council, which is not the competent body, and this complicated the crisis further instead of resolving it.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2497\" data-end=\"3000\">He affirms that he contacted the citizens&#8217; service at the Ministry of Agriculture in March 2025, where engineer Hanan told him at the time that the maps were still with the Fatwa and Legislation Department. When he contacted her later, she confirmed to him that the maps had been approved by the ministry, and that an engineer from the Agriculture ministry would visit Sohag within two weeks to meet the director of land protection and look into the problem. She told him he should follow up on the complaint after 20 days. Ashour considers that the crisis now requires political or parliamentary intervention, questioning the absence of MPs from the defence of the residents&#8217; right to build on land from which the state has already benefited.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3002\" data-end=\"3268\">At a time when about 20 families in Dar El-Salam district are still suffering the consequences of the removals linked to the Dar El-Salam Axis project, a number of residents of Qena Governorate were surprised in recent weeks by a new decision from the Minister of Transport, Lieutenant General Kamel El-Wazir, to expropriate another 194 plots of land for the same project.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3270\" data-end=\"3645\">The Official Gazette published decision No. 423 of 2025 by Lieutenant General Engineer Kamel Abdel Hadi El-Wazir, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, expropriating 194 properties and plots of land in Qena Governorate to implement the Dar El-Salam Axis project on the Nile. The decision stated that the expropriation came after it proved impossible to reach an amicable agreement with the owners, and that the targeted land lies in the areas of El-Omra, Abu Shousha and El-Bahary Samhoud, within the jurisdiction of the Qena Survey Directorate.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3647\" data-end=\"3908\">This decision implements the provisions of Prime Ministerial Decree No. 3873 of 2022, which designated the project a public-benefit work. The decision also stipulated that it be published in &#8220;Al-Waqae Al-Masriya&#8221; and that a copy be deposited with the competent Real Estate Registry office, and that it take effect from its date of issue on 16 July 2025.<\/p>\n<p><b>Recommended reading: <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/madinat-al-amal\/\"><b>\u201cCity of Hope\u201d Is Being Built on the Ruins of Ezbet El-Haggana<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<h1><b>A Compensation Crisis or a Permits Crisis?<\/b><\/h1>\n<p data-start=\"1445\" data-end=\"1862\">Commenting on the crisis, MP Ahmed Abdel Salam Qoura believes that the state paid &#8220;generous&#8221; compensation to the citizens affected by the works to complete the Dar El-Salam Axis, noting that this compensation amounted to twice the market value of the land that was expropriated. He explains that a number of residents were able to buy alternative land, and that some of them, according to him, even expressed complete satisfaction with what they received, to the point that some wished more of their property would be removed after the benefit they had seen.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"1864\" data-end=\"2365\">Regarding the houses removed in the village of Awlad Khalaf, Qoura tells Zawia3 that the owners of about 17 to 20 houses have already received financial compensation, in addition to receiving promises that they would be allowed to rebuild on agricultural land with the same areas they lost. He adds that this file is still being followed up between the Ministry of Agriculture, the Cabinet and other bodies, affirming that parliament will raise the issue again at the start of its next session by submitting briefing requests, saying: &#8220;The residents sacrificed their homes for a national project, and they have the right to obtain suitable housing among their families and in their villages.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"2367\" data-end=\"2624\">As for the next phase of the project, Qoura explains that the Dar El-Salam Axis has not yet been completed, and that the second phase will involve new expropriations, whose owners will be compensated through the same mechanism as before, in implementation of the directives of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, particularly with regard to the people of Upper Egypt, as he put it.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2626\" data-end=\"3066\">For her part, MP Abla El-Hawary affirms that she is aware of the details of the crisis in the villages of Awlad Khalaf and Awlad Touq, explaining that the land on which the residents are demanding to build lies outside the agricultural zimam and the urban boundary, which makes granting permits illegal. She points out that if the residents ask to build within the residential block and on land designated for residential use, issuing permits is possible and available, but she stresses that what is currently being demanded contravenes the regulating laws.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3068\" data-end=\"3438\">Regarding the families currently living in huts or with relatives, El-Hawary tells Zawia3: &#8220;There are no government housing projects in the village of Awlad Khalaf from which units could be allocated. Whoever received compensation can buy land located within the zimam and build on it, instead of demanding to build in agricultural areas or outside the urban boundary.&#8221; She affirms that the core of the problem lies in the fact that the land on which they are demanding to build is not designated for housing.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3440\" data-end=\"3690\">Responding to claims circulated by some residents that they had not received compensation, or that luxury homes had been removed, El-Hawary denies these claims, affirming that all those affected received compensation and that what is said about villas being removed has no basis in truth, adding: &#8220;There are no villas in the village of Awlad Khalaf.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3692\" data-end=\"4042\">Regarding the latest decision published in the Official Gazette on expropriating new land to complete the Dar El-Salam Axis between Sohag and Qena, the MP explains that the project is still under implementation, and that the expropriations are carried out in accordance with Law No. 10 of 1990, which provides for compensating citizens through specialised committees, affirming that the aim of the expropriation is to complete the national project, not to seize land for no purpose.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_13708\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13708\" style=\"width: 1600px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13708\" src=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2.jpeg\" alt=\"Route of the Dar El-Salam Axis (the official website of MP Ahmed Qoura)\" width=\"1600\" height=\"789\" srcset=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2.jpeg 1600w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2-300x148.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2-1024x505.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2-768x379.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2022-05-24-at-5.10.53-PM-2-1536x757.jpeg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-13708\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Route of the Dar El-Salam Axis (the official website of MP Ahmed Qoura)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Recommended reading: <a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/north-sinai\/\">Development Bulldozers Storm El-Rissa District in El-Arish<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h1><b>The Transport Ministry Presses On with Expropriation<\/b><\/h1>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1442\" data-end=\"1799\">The expropriation decision in Qena Governorate, which<a href=\"https:\/\/diwanalomran.com\/%D9%82%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B1-393-%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%86%D8%A9-2025-%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%B2%D8%B9-%D9%85%D9%84%D9%83%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%B6-%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%86%D8%B4%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D9%83%D8%A8%D8%A7\/\"> was issued<\/a> by Minister of Transport Lieutenant General Kamel El-Wazir, was not the only one of its kind in the recent period; a few days earlier, the Official Gazette had published a similar approval under decision No. 393 of 2025 to expropriate about 85 plots of land and properties in Dakahlia Governorate, as part of the plan to develop the Mansoura\u2013Gamasa road (the Gamasa feeder road), which runs through Dakahlia and Damietta governorates.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1801\" data-end=\"2135\">The decision covered land and properties in the areas of El-Manial, Mit Antar, Orman Talkha, Talkha city, Abu Madi, Kafr Demalash, Mit Zanqar and El-Rawda, after it proved impossible to obtain the signatures of the owners or concerned parties on the ownership transfer forms. The decision, issued on 10 July 2025, stipulated that it be published in &#8220;Al-Waqae Al-Masriya&#8221; and that a copy be deposited with the competent Real Estate Registry office, and that it enter into force from its date of issue.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2137\" data-end=\"2393\">This decision is part of implementing Prime Ministerial directive No. 3877 of 2022, which designated the project a public-benefit work, and it includes the construction of four flyovers at the Gamasa, Ammar, Demira and El-Rawda sites, as well as two gates for security control and toll collection in the Zayan and Sharnaqash areas.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"2395\" data-end=\"2816\">For his part, Ibrahim Ezzeldin, senior researcher and co-founder of &#8220;Diwan Al-Omran for Urban Studies&#8221;, believes that the pace of expropriation decisions has accelerated since 2014 and has become a systematic path for the Egyptian state to seize private land on the pretext of public benefit, as he describes it. He adds that this tool is used to implement investment projects and traffic axes, amid the absence of a clear legal framework defining public benefit, which leaves any citizen exposed to having their property expropriated without precise controls.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"2818\" data-end=\"3131\">Ezzeldin tells Zawia3: &#8220;The phrase &#8216;public benefit&#8217; is used as a legal pretext, while the state controls the entire process, from issuing the decision to setting the conditions and the mechanisms of implementation and compensation. This closed structure breeds a loss of trust and undermines what remains of the social contract between the citizen and the government, which is supposed to protect people&#8217;s interests, not ignore them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3133\" data-end=\"3485\">Ezzeldin warns of the economic repercussions of these policies, citing the case of the expropriation of 31 feddans in the El-Salam II district for the &#8220;Ahalina 6&#8221; project, where the state set compensation at EGP 7,700 per square metre, while units in the same project are sold at up to EGP 20,000 per metre. &#8220;With this big gap, the citizen will not be able to buy a housing unit on the very land that was taken from him,&#8221; Ezzeldin says.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3487\" data-end=\"3784\">At the urban and environmental level, the researcher criticises the state&#8217;s expansion in building axes and bridges, and believes that these projects isolate neighbourhoods socially and are carried out without sufficient planning or environmental studies. He adds: &#8220;Some of these bridges collapsed within the first year of their construction, which raises real questions about the feasibility of those projects and the extent of their sustainability.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3786\" data-end=\"4020\">He points to the existence of more sustainable alternatives that the government has neglected to adopt, such as improving the public transport system, developing infrastructure for pedestrians and bicycles, and building integrated urban communities that provide real jobs and services, instead of quick solutions based on large-scale removals.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4022\" data-end=\"4284\">Legally, Ezzeldin believes that the state&#8217;s practices are consistent neither with the Egyptian Constitution nor with international conventions such as the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, stressing the absence of any involvement of stakeholders in the decision-making stages, as citizens are merely informed after the expropriation decisions are issued.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4286\" data-end=\"4566\">As for the options available to those affected, he explains that the law allows objections within 15 days of the announcement of the maps and lists, and challenges to the compensation assessment before the court of first instance within four months. But he adds: &#8220;When compensation is unjust and the executive authority controls every detail, these rights become of hardly any effect.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4568\" data-end=\"4807\">Ezzeldin concludes by stressing that the absence of a comprehensive vision for urban planning, and the state&#8217;s reliance on axes and bridges as quick fixes, carry deep negative effects for the future of cities and the resilience of their infrastructure, calling for urban policies to be reconsidered from their roots.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"4809\" data-end=\"5109\">In a related context, the Official Gazette published a decision by Minister of Local Development Manal Awad to expropriate several prominent properties to develop the entrance to Heliopolis, including building No. (85) on El-Horreya Street in the Almaza area, the building and restaurant located at the intersection of Moheb and Hussein Kamel streets, and plot of land No. (2) bis, block (435) bis, on Fanatis El-Mayah Street.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"5111\" data-end=\"5385\">According to the &#8220;Diwan Al-Omran&#8221; centre, the state granted compensation of EGP 7,700 per square metre in the El-Salam district, while the project&#8217;s terms-and-conditions booklet stipulated selling the same metre at up to EGP 20,000, a clear indication, according to the centre, of the wide gap between the value of compensation and the market price in the government&#8217;s own projects.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> <\/span><b>Recommended reading: <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/old-rent-law-5\/\"><b>Three Months to Give Up Your Home: The Government&#8217;s Plan Unsettles Old-Rent Tenants<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<h1><b>Expropriation Only in Cases of Extreme Necessity?<\/b><\/h1>\n<p data-start=\"1360\" data-end=\"1800\">For his part, Dr Abbas El-Zafarany, former dean of the Faculty of Regional and Urban Planning at Cairo University, believes that expropriation should only be used in cases of extreme necessity, stressing the importance of the compensation being more than fair, so that it covers not only the price of the property but also the cost of moving, and the resulting severing of social ties and distance from workplaces. He affirms that raising the value of compensation forces government bodies to take their time and scrutinise carefully before taking decisions of this kind.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1802\" data-end=\"2113\">El-Zafarany points out that some projects in recent years have made a tangible difference, such as the Jehan El-Sadat Axis, which helped cut travel time between Nasr City and outlying areas, describing it as a successful model. On the other hand, however, he criticises the construction of other bridges, which he describes as &#8220;useless&#8221;, noting the absence of real benefit in some cases.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2115\" data-end=\"2480\">He tells Zawia3: &#8220;I see no justification for removing existing homes in order to build new housing projects. Expropriation is only acceptable if it is linked to a real public benefit, such as building a traffic axis that serves transport. But removing workers&#8217; housing in the Sixth District, or inhabited areas that are not informal, is a wrong measure. What we are witnessing in these cases is the removal of the homes of the poor to build housing units targeting higher economic segments.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2482\" data-end=\"2892\">He adds that Egypt faces what he describes as a &#8220;property glut&#8221;, as there are huge quantities of unsold housing units, while the state needs to direct its investments towards vital productive sectors such as agriculture, industry, mining and energy. In this context, he calls for a focus on solar energy projects to reduce dependence on abroad, affirming that reclaiming and cultivating agricultural land brings economic and food benefits that are more useful to society than static real estate investments.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2894\" data-end=\"3127\">Concluding his remarks, El-Zafarany stresses that priority today must be given to sustainable development in the fields of food and energy, instead of continuing to launch new housing projects or expanding without justification in building bridges and roads within congested areas such as Nasr City.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1133\" data-end=\"1463\">Engineer Mohamed Abdel Rahman, secretary-general of the Real Estate Appraisal Experts Association, believes that the recent ministerial expropriation decisions are not an exception, but an extension of a path that began with Law No. 10 of 1990 on the expropriation of real estate for public benefit; however, the amendments introduced under Law No. 187 of 2020 represented a fundamental shift in the mechanism for issuing and implementing these decisions.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1465\" data-end=\"1848\">Among the most prominent of these amendments is the obligation on the body requesting expropriation to deposit the value of the initial compensation in a government bank account within a month of the issuance of the public-benefit decision, with the full amount to be deposited within three months in an interest-bearing account, while granting owners the right to late-payment interest. The validity of the public-benefit decision was also extended from two years to three, although it is considered void with regard to properties for which no measures have been taken within this period.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1850\" data-end=\"2205\">Speaking to Zawia3, Abdel Rahman explains that these amendments gave broad powers to executive officials, as issuing expropriation decisions is no longer the exclusive preserve of the President of the Republic, as it was previously; rather, any administrative official can now take the decision directly, which has led, as he describes it, to a loose use of the concept of &#8220;public benefit&#8221;, sometimes for financial goals concerning the ministries more than for serving citizens.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2207\" data-end=\"2527\">Abdel Rahman criticises the lack of sufficient time to notify citizens before implementation, as well as the inadequacy of compensation, affirming that assessing the market value of the property plus 20% as moral compensation is not actually applied in many cases, because government bodies rely on in-house employees instead of independent appraisal experts registered with the Financial Regulatory Authority.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2529\" data-end=\"2707\">He adds: &#8220;Real estate appraisal experts work according to standards adopted since 2015, which are compatible with international standards and require that valuation be restricted to those registered with the Authority, to guarantee neutrality and transparency.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2709\" data-end=\"3158\">He also draws attention to a serious legal loophole: only those who hold a title deed registered with the Real Estate Registry are entitled to compensation or to challenge it, while registered properties do not exceed 10% of all property in Egypt, which deprives the majority of owners of their rights and places them outside the circle of legal protection. He affirms that paying compensation at fair market value plus the moral percentage would have given citizens a real chance to obtain alternative housing within the same area or its surroundings, calling for this provision to be strictly enforced.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3160\" data-end=\"3407\">Abdel Rahman concludes by stressing the importance of opening a broad societal dialogue before taking major expropriation decisions, especially those that affect citizens&#8217; lives or change the features of heritage areas, along with the need to involve specialists to secure a balance between development needs and the rights of residents and the urban heritage.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3409\" data-end=\"3577\">At the conclusion of this investigation, the Dar El-Salam Axis project emerges as a stark example of a complex conflict: between the state&#8217;s development goals and the reality of citizens who lost their homes without tangible solutions.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"3579\" data-end=\"3803\">Although official bodies insist on their commitment to the law and on paying compensation that exceeds market value, the testimonies of those affected reveal a different picture: compensation that is not enough to buy an alternative, promises unfulfilled for two years, and families living in temporary huts without water or electricity.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"3805\" data-end=\"4056\">Between officials&#8217; justifications, the texts of the law and experts&#8217; analyses, the equation of &#8220;public benefit&#8221; remains open to broad interpretations, while citizens wait, in their villages, their huts and their long patience, for the state to side not only with projects but also with their right to housing, justice and dignity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Entire families in Dar El-Salam district of Sohag Governorate lost their homes after the implementation of the Mohamed Sayed Tantawi Axis project. Despite the payment of compensation, those affected live in reed huts without building permits or alternative solutions. A Zawia3 investigation reveals the documents, the testimonies, and the responses of MPs and officials<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":13700,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[410],"tags":[],"kateb":[1550],"class_list":["post-16947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-investigations-en","kateb-aya-yasser"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/\u0645\u062d\u0648\u0631-\u062f\u0627\u0631-\u0627\u0644\u0633\u0644\u0627\u0645.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16947","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=16947"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24008,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16947\/revisions\/24008"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13700"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16947"},{"taxonomy":"kateb","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/kateb?post=16947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}