Egypt’s president approves new National Human Rights Council composition

CAIRO – 11 March 2026: President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has issued a decree approving the new composition of Egypt’s National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) for a four-year term, appointing veteran diplomat Ahmed Gamal El-Din as its chairman.

Gamal El-Din, who previously served as Egypt’s permanent representative to the United Nations in Geneva and as assistant foreign minister for human rights, takes over following last year’s resignation of Ambassador Moshira Khattab, who stepped down to pursue a position with an international organization.

Under the new structure, Mohamed Anwar Esmat Sadat, founder and leader of the Reform and Development Party, will serve as vice chairman of the council.

The new NCHR composition comprises 25 members, including prominent human rights figures, academics and veteran journalists, including Ezzat Ibrahim, editor-in-chief of Ahram Weekly and Ahram Online, and Alaa Shalaby, head of the Arab Organization for Human Rights.

Other members, including leading civil society figures, heads of key foundations, and journalists, are Ghada Mahmoud, Wafaa Metry, Ayman Jafar, Mohamed Abdel Halim, Mahmoud Basiouny, Saeed Darwish, Samira Danial, and Amr Fouad Barakat.

The council also includes Ehab Ragheb, Ayman Abdel Wahab, Nasser Aboul Oyoun, Mahi Hassan, Vivian Fathi, Gamal Maher Hassan, Mohamed Gamal Osman, Sherine Khalaf, Yara Mahmoud Qassem, Khaled Zakaria, Ahmed Bakri, Howida Botros, Mai Ibrahim El-Talawy, Bakr Soliman, and Ayman Saber.