An Egyptian court on Saturday sentenced a doctor who previously worked in a hospital in Alexandria to a six-month suspended prison sentence, after convicting her of spreading false news, according to what her lawyer said. Dr. Omnia Suwaidan said in a Facebook post that she witnessed incidents of violence against women during childbirth and neglect of patients at Al-Shatby University Hospital in Alexandria, where she trained as a resident doctor between 2020 and 2021.

Published on: 04/07/2026 - 19:41 Last updated: 05/07/2026 - 12:11

On Saturday, an Egyptian court issued a six-month suspended prison sentence against a doctor who previously worked in a hospital in Alexandria, after convicting her of spreading false news, according to what her lawyer said.

Swaidan had published a post on Facebook in which she said that she had witnessed incidents of violence against women during childbirth and neglect of patients at Al-Shatby University Hospital in Alexandria, where she trained as a resident doctor between 2020 and 2021.

In mid-June, Dr. Omnia Suwaidan, who now works in the film industry, was arrested at her home in the Beheira Governorate in the Nile Delta, and was interrogated on charges, most notably spreading false news and misusing social media sites. She was released pending trial.

Read also: Egypt: What is the truth about what is happening in the case of Dr. Amina Suwaidan?

Suwaidan was convicted of “publishing false news that would disturb public security, create panic among citizens, and harm the public interest” and “using an electronic account to commit the crime,” according to her lawyer, Mohamed Ramadan.

The court acquitted her of the charge of violating Egyptian family values, according to her lawyer Khaled Ali, who was contacted by Agence France-Presse.

She was also imposed a fine of 20,000 pounds ($408), according to Ramadan, who announced his intention to appeal the decision.

In the now-deleted post, Suwaidan spoke about widespread violations at the hospital, including allegations that a doctor sexually assaulted a patient during labor and then mocked the incident, and another woman was slapped and verbally insulted during childbirth.

In the now-deleted post, Suwaidan alleged widespread abuse at the hospital, including allegations that a doctor sexually assaulted a patient during labor and then mocked the incident, and another woman was slapped and verbally insulted during childbirth.

Read also shocking testimonies from delivery rooms in Egypt... Who protects mothers?

She also spoke of the denial of medical care to vulnerable patients, including a sexual assault survivor who was expelled and refused treatment, and a critically ill pregnant woman who said she was denied emergency medical intervention because she did not have proof of marriage.

The Public Prosecution said that Suwaidan told investigators that she had witnessed some medical procedures, and “due to her lack of experience” she thought they were out of the ordinary.

The prosecution added that some of what the former doctor wrote in the post did not occur to her, but rather “was transmitted to her from others whom she could not identify, and she did not investigate whether it occurred or not.”

Before the Public Prosecution’s announcement, Alexandria University confirmed in a statement that everything that is being circulated is “subject to careful examination,” ensuring access to the full facts without fragmentation or anticipating the results of the investigation.

The Doctors Syndicate announced that it had not received any official complaints regarding the accusations, and urged anyone with evidence to submit them through official channels.

Following Suwaidan's post, several women on social media reported similar experiences in government hospitals across Egypt, including Shatby Hospital.

Agence France-Presse was unable to independently verify the validity of Suwaidan’s accusations or those shared by other women.

France 24/AFP

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