Egypt: RSF condemns the authorities’ persecution of Mada Masr and its journalists

• August 2025: Mada Masrfounder and editor-in-chief Lina Attalahwas questioned on 4 August, by the Supreme State Security Prosecutor. Accused of spreading "false information" following an article on alleged prisoner abuses, this internationally renowned journalist, winnerof the RSF Prize for Independence in 2020, has been released on bail of 30,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately 530 euros). She currently faces a fine and a prison sentence of six months to five years, according to the Egyptian Penal Code. Lina Attalah is also accused of operating a website without authorization, as the authorities have still not responded to Mada Masr's license applications.

• March 2024: Investigative journalist Rana Mamdouhwas arrested while reporting near Ras el-Hikma, the site of a mega real estate project on Egypt's Mediterranean coast. The journalist was subsequently held for nearly ten hours in a police station after being accused of conducting interviews without authorization. Rana Mamdouh was released on bail of 5,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately 90 euros).

• February 2024: Lina Attalah was questioned by the Cairo Appeals Prosecution for "spreading false information" and operating an "unlicensed website", before being released on bail of 5,000 Egyptian pounds. This summons followed a complaint from the Supreme Council of Media regarding an article Mada Masr published in October 2023 on secret negotiations regarding the forced displacement of the Palestinian population from Gaza to Egypt.

• September 2022: Lina Attalah, Rana Mamdouh, along with reporter Beesan Kassaband economic journalist Sara Seif Eddinwere summonedby the Cairo General Prosecutor on 7 September on charges of "disseminating false information likely to disrupt public order and harm the public interest." They were indicted for an article on alleged corruption within Egypt's presidential party. Lina Attalah was released on bail of 20,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately €990 at the time), and the other three journalists were released on bail of 5,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately €250 at the time) each.

• May 2020: Lina Attalah was arrested near Tora Prison in Cairo while attempting to interview Leila Soueif, the mother of imprisoned Egyptian-British blogger Alaa Abdel-Fattah, outside the prison where he was being held. The journalist was accused of "filming a military facility without obtaining a license from the competent authorities," before being released on bail of 2,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately €120 at the time).

The Egyptian authorities' relentless harassment of independent media, including the editorial staff of Mada Masr, earned Egypt, led by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, to rank 170 out of 180 countries and territories in the2025 World Press Freedom Index.