Tripoli, Libya – Libyan security authorities have arrested Mahmoud Fathi, an Egyptian terrorist leader who also holds Turkish citizenship, along with his wife, who also holds Egyptian and Turkish citizenship.
Details of the arrest and fears of deportation
The arrest took place on Sunday evening, July 19, 2026, at 4:00 PM. He was detained at his residence in the Tawfiq Hotel, located in the Dahra district in the heart of the Libyan capital, Tripoli. Following the announcement of Mahmoud Fathi’s arrest, panic spread among Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated online platforms. These platforms quickly accused the Libyan authorities of imposing a media blackout on the incident.
Mahmoud Fathi is one of the most prominent names on Egypt’s lists of designated terrorist entities. His name has also been linked to several terrorism-related cases, and he was sentenced to death in the case known in the media as the assassination of Prosecutor General Hisham Barakat. In fact, the issue of fugitive terrorist elements outside Egypt has become a significant security concern in recent years. A number of leaders and members of the Muslim Brotherhood have sought refuge in various foreign countries and have used media and digital platforms to disseminate inflammatory rhetoric against the Egyptian state. These platforms expressed deep concern about the potential extradition of terrorist Mahmoud Fathi and his wife to Egyptian authorities, given his extensive criminal record and numerous convictions in absentia. This makes him one of the most wanted men in Cairo.
A history of violence and sabotage in Egypt
Mahmoud Fathi is considered one of the most radical figures; he is a disciple of Hazem Salah Abu Ismail and served as the right-hand man of Khairat al-Shater, the deputy leader of the Muslim Brotherhood. His opportunistic career began prominently in 2011 when he seized the mandates of the Virtue Party, which was considered the first political project of the Salafist movement after the January events. He then appointed himself head of the party after ousting its true founder, Dr. Adel Afifi Abdel-Maqsoud. This caused widespread divisions within the movement, reflecting the Brotherhood’s consistent tactics of controlling political entities, which they use as instruments to achieve their agenda.
Following the fall of the Muslim Brotherhood’s rule in Egypt, Fathi played a pivotal role in implementing the terrorist group’s agenda. He contributed to the establishment of armed militant groups that emerged from within the Brotherhood, most notably the “Unknown” movement. He also served as the general coordinator of several specialized armed committees that targeted army and police personnel as part of a bloody plan to overthrow the Egyptian state. His crimes culminated in a death sentence in absentia for his involvement in the assassination of the Egyptian Attorney General, Counselor Hisham Barakat.
Furthermore, he was involved in overseeing militant cells such as the “Assassination Cell” and the “Ambush Cell.” The total sentences issued against him exceed 100 years of life imprisonment. After the pressure intensified, Mahmoud Fathi fled to Turkey in 2013. There, his relationship with the security services deepened.
