Egypt’s Interior Ministry has launched a fresh wave of arrests targeting TikTok personalities and other online creators, prompting condemnation from rights groups who say the campaign weaponises vague morality laws to silence young, mostly female voices.
High-profile arrest
- “Suzy el Ordoneya” (18) — a popular vlogger — was seized in New Cairo on Saturday after what the ministry called “multiple complaints.”
- She is already appealing a two-year juvenile sentence and a EGP 300,000 ($6,200) fine for “indecent language” in a livestream that prosecutors claimed insulted her father.
Pattern of opaque charges
Authorities have confirmed detaining several other TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube creators but offered only the blanket accusation of “violating family values” or “publishing inappropriate content.” The same charge has previously been levelled at influencers Haneen Hossam, Mawadda al-Adham, and Mai Farouk.
Rights advocates note:
- No clear criteria define what constitutes “offensive” material.
- The crackdown disproportionately targets women and marginalised communities.
- Arrests chill one of the few remaining spaces for public expression as traditional media remain tightly controlled.
Civil-society response
Egyptian and international NGOs denounced what they call the “systematic targeting of girls and young women,” urging an end to state “moral guardianship” over digital content and warning that punitive tactics are eroding fundamental freedoms.
Social-media users echoed those concerns, asking why enforcement appears selective: “Why is it only women, and only women from a certain class, getting arrested for indecency?” one commenter wrote.
Since 2020, Egypt has repeatedly used cybercrime and morality clauses to prosecute influencers, often imposing large fines and prison terms. Observers fear the latest sweep is part of a broader push to police online discourse ahead of sensitive political and economic decisions.