Egypt detains top educational YouTuber Ahmed AbouZaid shortlisted for UAE award

Egyptian authorities have detained one of the most followed YouTubers and podcasters in the country, Ahmed AbouZaid, a few days after he made it to the shortlist of the 1 Billion Followers Summit award in Dubai.
According to a source close to AbouZaid, he was arrested a week ago from his home in Gharbia Governorate by security forces after he withdrew a large sum of cash from his personal bank account.
The Egyptian Public Prosecution later charged AbouZaid with illegal currency trading and detained him for four days pending investigations.
AbouZaid, through his YouTube channel Droos Online, has reached nearly 20 percent of Egypt's 48 million YouTube users by providing educational content.
His success appears to have raised concerns among the Egyptian authorities under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government routinely cracks down on social media influencers with large followings.
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
His defence team appealed for his release, which was granted at al-Santa Court in Gharbia Governorate, but the prosecution challenged the decision, leading the court to extend his detention for another 15 days.
On 13 January, AbouZaid appeared before the court again and his detention was confirmed. He was then referred to the Criminal Court for trial.
"YouTube revenues are the main source of income for Ahmed," the source told Middle East Eye. They added that AbouZaid has never engaged in illegal currency trading or any other form of currency exchange, and all his transactions have been conducted through Egyptian banks.
On the day of his arrest, AbouZaid withdrew "a significant amount of money" from his bank account and took it home, the source said.
"It was an opportunity to arrest him and fabricate this charge," they added, referring to a police officer in the Egyptian Ministry of Interior's Public Funds Investigations Department.
Colonel Mohamed El-Dahrawy, promoted in July 2023, previously led al-Santa Investigations in Gharbia Governorate, where AbouZaid lives. The source added: "The colonel has known about Ahmed for a long time and has been monitoring him recently."
Who is Ahmed AbouZaid?
AbouZaid is one of the most popular YouTubers and podcasters in Egypt, boasting more than 11 million followers across social media platforms. He offers educational content, simplified English language courses and advice on life management and practical success.
Born in September 1992 in Gharbia Governorate, AbouZaid enrolled in the Faculty of Civil Engineering at Tanta University in 2009 despite not wanting to pursue that path.
"I wanted to study computer engineering, but due to pressure from relatives and society, civil engineering, which was the most popular option at the time, became my unfortunate choice," he wrote on his website.
His journey with YouTube and content creation started in 2012. After realising he did not enjoy civil engineering, he began learning Photoshop and After Effects by taking online courses.
"Why don't I spend my time creating educational content about the basics of Photoshop on a YouTube channel? This is how my journey with YouTube began," AbouZaid wrote.
In 2015, he bought filming equipment and a green screen to create educational content about the English language. His YouTube channel grew rapidly, leading him to resign from his job as a civil engineer in Marsa Alam.
"After six months, I kept asking myself: What am I doing here? In 2017, I decided to leave civil engineering to become a full-time YouTuber, even before the term was popular in Egypt," AbouZaid explained.
In August, Statista published a report indicating that the number of YouTube users in Egypt reached 48.1 million people in 2024. This figure represents a significant percentage of the approximately 82 million total internet users in Egypt, as reported by Statista in May 2024.
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.