Egypt fines prominent editor Lina Attalah and shuts independent news outlet Mada Masr

Lina Attalah, a prominent Egyptian journalist and editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, was briefly detained after a Cairo court convicted her of managing an unlicensed website. The court ordered her website to be shut down, prompting international concerns over press freedom in Egypt.

Attalah was released after Mada Masr paid a fine of 3 million Egyptian pounds ($53,500; £40,100). Her lawyer Hassan al-Azhari revealed that during the process, they discovered she had been sentenced in absentia in 2024 to a year in prison plus a 20,000 Egyptian pound fine.

Legal Battle Continues

Attalah's defence team has appealed the 2024 sentence, with a new court hearing scheduled for November 11. Her legal team suggested she was effectively ambushed during a court appearance, with a judge appointing a defence lawyer before security personnel detained her in the courtroom.

Broader Crackdown

Attalah's detention and the ordered closure of Mada Masr follow the arrest of the entire six-person team at the independent factchecking platform Matsadaash, who were charged with belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. Mada Masr had applied for a license to operate three years ago but received no reply from Egyptian authorities.

The crackdown "can only mean that Egypt's security agencies are moving from years of harassing independent media to wiping them out completely," said Hossam Bahgat, head of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. "This escalation validates our fears that the arrest and continued detention of the six Matsadaash journalists would signal a crackdown of unprecedented magnitude."

International Response

Reporters Without Borders called the court's decision "outrageous" and "shameful," urging authorities to release Attalah "at once. The Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty International also condemned the verdict, with Amnesty calling it a crushing blow to press freedom."

Egypt is among the top jailers of journalists globally, with 25 currently behind bars according to CPJ. Pen International and several dozen civil society organizations issued a joint statement condemning the moves, noting this was the sixth case against Mada Masr in six years but the first to be referred to trial.

The crackdown comes as Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi has made increasing statements since August claiming a conspiracy to destabilize the country, saying he intends to remain in power until 2030 to protect Egypt from "traitors, criminals, and saboteurs."