(Adnkronos) – Egyptian authorities have charged the director of the online newspaper Mada Masr, Lina Attalah, with spreading “false information” and running a website “without a license”. The newspaper itself reported this. The accusation formally brought against Attalah comes following the publication, on July 31, of a journalistic investigation that denounced alleged abuse and mistreatment of inmates in a Cairo prison. The article included testimonies and a letter attributed to the governor of Alexandria, Hassan al-Barnes, which described degrading prison conditions and human rights violations. According to Mada Masr, Attalah was released on bail after paying a sum equal to 30,000 Egyptian pounds (about 530 euros).
The disputed report also included accusations by family members of detainees affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, who reported that some prisoners had started a hunger strike to protest against the conditions of detention. Amnesty International called the charges against the director “alarming” and stressed that the journalist is being targeted solely for her role as head of an independent media outlet and for her commitment to freedom of expression.
Before Attalah’s indictment, the Egyptian Interior Ministry had published a note rejecting all accusations, calling the published letter “a fabrication” and accusing the Muslim Brotherhood of spreading “lies”.
