Egypt convicts Mada Masr editor in ‘draconian’ press crackdown

An Egyptian court has ordered the closure of Mada Masr, one of the country’s leading independent news sites, sentencing its editor-in-chief to the maximum financial penalty and taking her into custody.

The ruling, handed down on Tuesday by the New Cairo Misdemeanours Court, convicted Lina Attalah of managing an unlicensed website, imposing a fine of three million Egyptian pounds (£48,000), ordering the shutdown of the platform, and demanding the confiscation of its assets and property.

Ms Attalah was immediately detained in the courtroom pending payment of the fine, marking an unprecedented legal blow to critical reporting under president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

Egyptian authorities claims ​the state is committed to upholding freedom of expression but that the media must operate within the law, respect national security and counter misinformation.

Mada Masr, which publishes in English and Arabic, has operated for more than a decade in the country. In 2023, the outlet was awarded the British-Canadian Media Freedom Award for its “extraordinary commitment to high-quality independent journalism”.

The site has submitted repeated applications for an official operating licence from the Supreme Council for Media Regulation since 2018, but heard nothing back ​and only learned of a rejection when prosecutors raised the issue during an ​earlier case in ⁠2022.

The council has not commented on the case but has said that it facilitates procedures for outlets which ⁠meet official ​requirements and is keen to promote freedom of expression. State ​authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rights advocates and media freedom watchdogs have described the closed-door proceedings as a “farcical” trial that “squandered Lina’s legal rights.”

Lobna Darwish, advocacy director at the EIPR, raised alarm over Ms Attalah's safety, warning that the proceedings pointed toward a deliberate strategy to “destroy the last remnants of independent media in Egypt.”

“We are extremely worried for Lina’s safety while still in state security’s custody,” Ms Darwish said. “The Egyptian law imposes draconian measures that only serve to limit press freedoms in the country.”

Amnesty International’s senior director for regional impact, Yasmine Ahmed, echoed these concerns, describing the court decision as “a crushing blow to press freedom in Egypt.”

According to Hossam Bahgat, executive director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR) who was present in court, the judge cleared the room of all attendees except Ms Attalah and her defence team, before plainclothes security personnel, court guards, and a National Security Agency officer entered.

The bench systematically rejected every procedural request submitted by Ms Attalah’s eight-member defence counsel.

Her lawyer, appointed by the judge, and unknown to Ms Attalah and her defence team, did not speak until she had been sentenced.

But in spite of the charges, Ms Attalah and her colleagues have vowed to continue their work.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has expressed outrage over the conviction, warning of Sisi’s wider crackdown on the free press.

The court order marks the first time an Egyptian tribunal has formally ordered the shuttering and asset seizure of a news organisation on licensing charges — a move which sets a concerning precedent for remaining independent media organisations in the country.

But the state has already severely escalated its targeting of reporters. Last month, Egyptian security forces arrested and charged the entire newsroom of independent fact-checking platform Matsadaash with terrorism-related offences.

Egypt has consistently ranked as one the world's leading jailers of journalists after Sisi’s coup, and rise to power in 2013.

As of October 2026, 25 reporters in the country remain behind bars.