Aida Seif el-Dawla

Aida Seif el-Dawla (; born 1954) is an Egyptian human rights activist. She is known for her advocacy for victims of torture, as well as her activism against female genital mutilation and violence against women. As a result of el-Dawla's activism, she has experienced persecution from Egyptian authorities, including being charged in 2026 of spreading false news.

Early life and education El-Dawla was born in 1954 into a politically active family in Cairo. Her father was a lawyer who defended political prisoners, some of whom were el-Dawla's own relatives.

El-Dawla studied medicine and surgery at Ain Shams University, graduating in 1978. She went on to obtain a master's degree in psychiatry, followed by a PhD in 1991. El-Dawla worked for a time as a professor of medicine at Ain Shams. El-Dawla serves a member of advisory boards for Women's Mental Health Magazine, the European University Centre for Mental Health and Human Rights, and the effects of violence and stalking department of the World Psychiatric Association. El-Dawla was part of a group of doctors inspired to help after a colleague, Hisham Mubarak, became deaf as a result of being tortured; he additionally had been unable to obtain formal medical reports about his health and condition due to evidencing that he had been tortured. In addition to providing psychiatric support to former detainees, El Nadeem campaigns against the use of torture in Egyptian police stations and prisons, and publishes periodic reports on cases of torture, death and medical negligence among people held in the Egyptian justice system.

El-Dawla has continued to criticise the Egyptian government since the 2011 revolution for its continued oppression of freedom of expression and association, as well as harassment of human rights activists. In addition, she has criticised its decision to maintain diplomatic relations with Israel following the outbreak of the Gaza war, as well as not opening the Rafah Border Crossing and allowing the Israeli military to access the Philadelphia Corridor. El-Dawla has also condemned the government for arresting activists demonstrating in support of Palestine.

On 23 November 2016, el-Dawla was informed by airport officials that she had been placed under a travel ban. The decision was criticised by the World Organisation Against Torture and the International Federation for Human Rights, which stated the ban was in contravention of articles 78 and 93 of the Egyptian constitution, and linking the harassment of el-Dawla as part of Egyptian authorities' ongoing persecution of human rights activists and organisations.

On 11 February 2026, el-Dawla announced that she had been summoned to appear for questioning before the Supreme State Security Prosecution at its office in Dokki, without being provided a reason why. On 15 February, following an interrogation, she was charged with "spreading false news in Egypt and abroad with the aim of disrupting public security and peace and causing confusion". El-Dawla was released after paying an 100, 000 EGP bail.

The charges against el-Dawla have been widely criticised by human rights groups. The Irish human rights organisation Front Line Defenders condemned the charges, calling on Egyptian authorities to drop the investigation, which it described as "judicial harassment". 18 organisations, including the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms and the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, published a joint statement expressing their "deep concern" at el-Dawla's summons, calling it a "restriction" and an attempt to "intimidate" her and others into stopping their human rights work, comparing it to recent summons given to other activists including Ahmed Douma and Mahienour El-Massry.