The investigative judge for Case No. 173, known as the NGO Foreign Funding Case, summoned feminist and woman human rights defender (WHRD) Mozn Hassan, Founder and Executive Director for Nazra for Feminist Studies, for interrogation, where she will appear before him on Wednesday 20 June 2018 at New Cairo Court in Fifth Settlement District. Prior to that, the passport administration at Cairo International Airport banned her from travel on 26 June 2016 while she was processing her departure from Cairo to Beirut, and was then informed verbally that the travel ban was issued by the General Prosecutor in accordance to a request from the investigative judge. Hassan then was traveling to attend and participate in an Executive Committee meeting for the WHRD Regional Coalition for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as a regional expert for the coalition, that took place during the period from 27 June to 1 July 2016.

It is also worth mentioning that the North Cairo Elementary Court froze her personal assets and those of the association “Nazra for Feminist Studies” on 11 January 2017, where this verdict was issued in accordance to a request by the investigative judge within the same case referred to above. This sets a precedent in Case No. 173 where an association has its assets frozen, as Nazra for Feminist Studies is the first association to have its assets frozen in the history of civic associations working on women’s human rights.

The charges faced by Hassan in the concerned case include: “inciting and calling for the irresponsible liberation of women”, which clearly shows the refusal of the state to any real and genuine efforts exerted for the empowerment of women and those that guarantee their human rights.

Mozn Hassan is a feminist and WHRD, and is one of the founder of Nazra for Feminist Studies and its Executive Director. She works on several feminist issues since 2001 including and not limited to combating violence against women in the public sphere, provision of psychological, medical and legal support to survivors of sexual violence, women’s political participation in Egypt and the MENA region, and enabling women to reach decision-making positions.

The summon of Mozn Hassan for interrogation comes within the context of Case No. 173 for the year 2011 commonly known as the "NGO Foreign Funding Case" that was reopened two years ago to pursue its investigations, where 3 members from Nazra for Feminist Studies were summoned on 22 March 2016 to appear before the investigative judge, after which Mozn Hassan was summoned to appear before him on 29 March 2016 at New Cairo Court, where the judge notified the attending lawyers that he will specify an appointment for them to review the case papers, and subsequently will summon Mozn Hassan at another time. And the recent summon comes as a fourth step within the frame of interrogating her and referring her to the judiciary. Mozn Hassan is a board member of Global Fund for Women (GFW), member of the International Planning Committee of the 13th International Forum of the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID), recipient of the Charlotte Bunch Women Human Rights Defenders Award in 2013, and recipient of the Right Livelihood Award (RLA), known as the Alternative Nobel, which she and Nazra for Feminist Studies were awarded with in 2016 for her work on combating violence against women in the public sphere and work conducted in sustaining the Egyptian feminist movement.

Nazra for Feminist Studies condemns this procedure against its Executive Director, which comes within the context of steps taken by the Egyptian government for a long time and which escalated in the last two years to close the public space for civil society organizations. It is worth mentioning that Nazra for Feminist Studies was registered as an association on 23 December 2007 with the number 7184, and Nazra obtained the Economic and Social Special Consultative Status with the UN in January 2014.