Egyptian authorities charged journalist Mohamed Ashraf with joining a terrorist group and spreading false information, according to statements from the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. The charges followed an intensive interrogation focused on content published by Matsadaash, an independent fact-checking and investigative platform. Ashraf was ordered held for 15 days pending investigation.
The charges came after security forces arrested six journalists from Matsadaash over two days earlier in the week. The detained journalists are Abdallah Qadri, Mohamed Ashraf, Mohamed Adel, Islam Barakat, Mohamed Mahmoud, and Omar Helal. Authorities accused the journalists of operating without a license and publishing false information allegedly on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood, which Egypt designated as a terrorist organization in 2013. The whereabouts of the five other detained journalists remained unclear at the time of reporting.
Matsadaash co-founder Abdelrahman Mansour denied any connection to the Muslim Brotherhood and characterized the arrests as among the most severe attacks on Egyptian journalism in modern history. He defended his colleagues’ work investigating issues affecting public welfare and called on the government to explain its actions. The Egyptian State Information Service did not respond to requests for comment.
In response to the detentions, dozens of journalists organized an open-ended sit-in outside the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate in Cairo, demanding the journalists’ release. More than 80 international rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and the Committee to Protect Journalists, condemned the arrests as violations of press freedom and called for immediate release of the staff. The Egyptian Journalists Syndicate submitted requests to the interior ministry and public prosecutor seeking the journalists’ release and information about their status.
The detentions occurred shortly after the United States waived human rights conditions on $320 million in military aid to Egypt, citing Cairo’s national security contributions. While Mansour expressed uncertainty about a direct connection, he noted that international acceptance of Egypt’s human rights practices may facilitate such violations. Egypt ranks 169th among 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index, and approximately 26 journalists are currently imprisoned in the country.
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