Overview

The authorities detained and prosecuted government critics and activists under legal provisions criminalizing speech deemed offensive to the head of state, as well as for peaceful assembly. Members of the stateless Bidun minority continued to face entrenched discrimination, including the denial of their rights to access employment and public services. Migrant workers remained inadequately protected against exploitation and abuse. A new personal status law for Shi’a Muslims codified provisions discriminating against women in relation to divorce, child custody and inheritance. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people faced arrest. Eight Egyptian men were returned to Egypt despite risks that they would be tortured or forcibly disappeared. Courts continued to hand down death sentences; no executions were reported.

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