Parliament Approves Amendments to Military and National Service Law

The Egyptian House of Representatives has given final approval to amendments to the Military and National Service Law, during a plenary session held on Monday and chaired by Hisham Badawy.

The approved bill, submitted by the government, amends selected provisions of Law No. 127 of 1980 governing military and national service. The legislation aims to introduce terrorism-related operations as an additional legal criterion for both permanent and temporary exemption from compulsory military service.

According to the explanatory memorandum, the amendments are intended to honor the sacrifices made by members of the Armed Forces and the police in combat and counterterrorism operations, while also taking into account the humanitarian and social impact on families of civilian victims affected by such operations.

The law also introduces tougher financial penalties for offenses related to evasion of conscription or failure to respond to military call-up orders. Lawmakers said the revised fines are designed to strengthen both general and specific deterrence, while maintaining proportionality between offenses and penalties.

Under the approved amendments, Article 7 of the existing law was revised to place terrorist operations on equal legal footing with wartime operations when determining eligibility for exemption from compulsory service. In addition, Articles 49 and 52 were amended to increase fines imposed in cases of draft evasion or failure to comply with call-up requirements.

The bill consists of one substantive article, in addition to a publication clause stipulating that the law will enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Gazette.

A parliamentary report accompanying the legislation stated that the amendments were introduced in light of practical experience with the implementation of the Military and National Service Law, underscoring the need to update exemption criteria and review penalties to ensure justice, deterrence, and respect for the sacrifices made in defense of national security.