This joint report by the Freedom Initiative (FI) and the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP) investigates Egyptian authorities’ use of politically motivated travel bans and travel-related restrictions. Through in-depth interviews with 12 individuals from a variety of political, professional, and legal backgrounds, and who have experienced travel bans ranging from several weeks up to a decade at a time, our research maps the ambiguous legal context within which unlawful bans and restrictions are imposed. It explores how individuals subject to travel bans and lawyers grappling with bans have navigated Egypt’s byzantine legal processes for soliciting information about and challenging these measures in court. The report also documents the impact of unlawful travel bans and related restrictions on those targeted and offers recommendations to address these issues.
