Journalists in Egypt: Bans, threats and prison sentences

Pressure on the press in Egypt Bans, threats and prison sentences As of: November 15, 2026 • 5:11 a.m

Journalists in Egypt are exposed to enormous pressure - sometimes entire editorial teams are arrested. Courageous journalists still try to carry on. They hope for solidarity from abroad.

Mada Masr hasn't stopped working completely yet - the editors are still sending out their daily newsletter in Arabic and English. Among other things, with reports about criticism of the powerful transport minister after a fatal train accident west of Cairo.

Recently, the makers of Egypt's most important critical news portal have been writing more and more about themselves: at the end of October, editor-in-chief Lina Atallah was summoned to court.

The judge made a short trial - after just one day of proceedings, says Atallah: "He handed down the harshest sentence: the closure of Mada Masr and a fine of three million pounds. I was detained for a few hours until we paid the fine. At the end of this very long day, I learned that there was another case against us."

Court in Egypt orders the closure of independent news portal Vera Rudolph, ARD Cairo, tagesschau, Das Erste, November 13, 2026 • 8:00 p.m. One year in prison The journalist has already been convicted in this case - in absentia. The punishment is even harsher: one year in prison. "It's very scary, everyone is afraid of prison, no one has the courage to face it. No one should have to sit in prison because of their work as a journalist."

The judiciary's accusation is: spreading false news and operating a news website without permission. Mada Masr applied for the license years ago. The media makers were not informed until recently that the application had been rejected.

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Atallah is visibly affected by the hardships of the last few weeks - but they are not entirely new for her. Mada Masr has been around for 13 years - the Egyptian authorities have repeatedly tried to silence the critical voice.

"Lina herself was arrested several times and interrogated by the public prosecutor's office," says human rights activist Mohammed Zaree. "Nevertheless, she continues and resists. That makes me a little optimistic: that there are still people who defend themselves and try to report and analyze neutrally and truthfully."

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Mada Masr is not the only media that is currently subject to repression. Just over a month ago, the entire editorial team of a portal that had uncovered false information was arrested.

The government's goal is to bring the media into line, says Zaree. What happens if Mada Masr and the few other independent media have to close? "Egypt would sink into complete darkness. Nobody would know reliably what was happening in the country anymore," said Zaree.

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Eman Aouf from the journalists' union says there can be no question of press freedom in Egypt: As soon as a journalist decides to do his job neutrally, professionally and objectively, he is confronted with bans, threats and intimidation.

From the point of view of observers, the legal proceedings against Mada Masr violate all rules of the rule of law. Atallah was assigned a public defender at the October trial, but her own lawyers were excluded.

The editorial team is also defending itself against this - they have filed an appeal. Atallah hopes to be successful in court so that he can continue working. And it also relies on solidarity - from its own country as well as from abroad.

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International journalists' associations have strongly condemned the Egyptian government's actions against the media. There were also some critical words from politicians. But human rights activist Zaree says they are far too quiet.

The authoritarian government in Egypt is viewed too uncritically as a partner by Western governments: "The international community is pursuing an extremely short-sighted policy: stability at any price, even at the expense of human rights and freedoms. But without justice there can never be stability."

This topic in the program: tagesschau.de | Threatened freedom of the press in Egypt - journalists fight for the truth | 11/15/2026 | 12:21 a.m