Cairo to amend law restricting NGOs

Egypt plans to amend a controversial law passed last year that places tight controls on NGOs. Ratified in May 2017 by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the law has sparked fears of an intensified crackdown on civil society. Since Sisi took power in 2014, rights groups have regularly accused his government of human rights violations and over the repression of dissidents. A report on The Times of Israel site notes that Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli's office said a ministerial committee would be formed to help ‘achieve the aspirations of civil society’. The law provides Egypt's intelligence and security services with strict controls over the activities of NGOs, particularly groups that receive foreign funding.