Court orders closure of one of Egypt's last independent media outlets

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Court orders closure of one of Egypt's last independent media outlets

2026-10-28 04:16 Last Updated At：04:20

An Egyptian court ordered the closure of one of Egypt’s last independent news outlets Tuesday after convicting its editor-in-chief of operating a website without a license, a major blow to the country's shrinking press freedom.

The publication, Mada Masr, said its editor-in-chief and founder, Lina Attalah, was released after paying a fine equivalent to about $53,400. She had been detained for seven hours after the verdict, with her whereabouts unknown during that time, according to the outlet.

Mada Masr is one of the few remaining news outlets in Egypt known for investigating corruption, the expanding role of the country's powerful military, and human rights violations in a country where newspapers and television stations are closely controlled by authorities. Ahead of Tuesday’s hearing, Human Rights Watch called the prosecution of Attalah an escalation of an “outrageous attack on independent media.”

Attalah’s lead lawyer, Hassan el-Azhary, said Mada Masr planned to appeal the closure order.

“Today’s decision represents a crushing blow to press freedom in Egypt and marks a dark day for independent journalism in the country," Amnesty International said in a statement. By imposing a large fine, ordering the closure of Mada Masr and the seizure of its property, while ”detaining Lina Attalah until payment is made, the Egyptian authorities are sending a clear and ruthless message: critical, independent reporting will not be tolerated."

While completing her release paperwork, Attalah's defense team learned that the 44-year-old journalist had been sentenced in absentia in 2024 to one year in prison on charges of spreading false news and operating an unlicensed website — a conviction she intends to appeal, according to Mada Masr's Facebook page. An appeal hearing is set for Nov 11.

During Tuesday’s session at a Cairo misdemeanor court — the first in a trial announced last week — the judge rejected all of the defense’s procedural requests and ordered its lawyers to immediately give closing arguments, said Hossam Bahgat, head of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, a rights group, who attended the session.

When Attalah’s eight lawyers refused, the judge brought in a court-appointed lawyer none of them knew, over loud objections from the defense and from Attalah herself, Bahgat said. The judge declined to enter her rejection of the lawyer into the record, he said.

State security prosecutors summoned Attalah for questioning last week on charges of publishing false news and operating without a license, then referred her to trial on the latter charge.

Mada Masr says it first applied for a license in 2018 but never received an answer. Authorities have blocked its website inside Egypt since 2017, and the outlet says this is the sixth case brought against it or its journalists in six years.

Amnesty International and 118 other civil society groups and independent media outlets worldwide called on Egyptian authorities to stop targeting Mada Masr and grant it a license.

Khaled Elbalshy, head of the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate, the country's press union, said in a Facebook post that the organization is standing by and supporting Attalah's case, calling it “a wake-up call” that “runs counter to the demands" for removing press restrictions and media reform.

The case comes amid a broader crackdown on independent media in Egypt. On Tuesday, Egyptian prosecutors extended for another 15 days the pre-trial detention of all six journalists of the Matsadaash investigative platform, according to a statement posted on the platform's Facebook page.

“Their detention was extended without any new questioning, without being asked to respond to the accusations against them, and without being presented with any evidence to substantiate those allegations,” read the statement.

In late September, Matsadaash reporters were arrested on grounds of joining and financing a terrorist group and spreading false information — a generic list of charges brought against journalists and political critics in recent years.

Egypt ranks 169th among 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders’ 2026 World Press Freedom Index.

Exit polls suggest a rebuke of Netanyahu but no clear winner in Israel's election

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli voters delivered a sharp rebuke Tuesday to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with exit polls indicating voters gave his opponents a solid majority in the next parliament. Whether those disparate parties can form a government is uncertain and will likely take weeks of haggling.

The easiest path would involve Netanyahu's main rival, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, partnering with Arab-led parties, but that could prove politically difficult and potentially alienate other opposition factions.

The exit polls released by major Israeli TV stations suggested that Netanyahu’s bloc won about 50 seats, the opposition won about 52 and Arab parties won about 18. That would set the stage for weeks of political jockeying before a prime minister is declared — or another round of elections is called.

Eisenkot said the exit polls show a “lack of confidence” in Netanyahu and vowed to form a new government. Arab voters celebrated the exit polls while supporters of far-right parties aligned with Netanyahu expressed disappointment.

Netanyahu had yet to make a public statement two hours after the exit polls were released.

Like all surveys, exit polls are subject to potential error. Preliminary results are expected in the coming hours. Final results are expected in the coming days and may vary from the exit polls.

An inconclusive result would leave Israel in political limbo after the country’s first national election since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

The race is widely seen as a referendum on Netanyahu’s nearly unbroken 17-year rule, which had left Israelis bitterly divided on a host of issues even before the deadliest attack in the country's history. The resulting wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, along with settler violence in the occupied West Bank, have stoked worldwide outrage, straining ties with Israel’s closest allies and fueling a rise in antisemitism.

Among Israelis, the election is widely seen as a struggle over the character of the state, pitting Netanyahu and his ultranationalist and religious allies against those seeking to preserve its liberal and secular foundations. The opposition may soon have to grapple with the social divisions — between right and left, and between Jews and Arabs — that have widened during Netanyahu's long and polarizing rule.

Voter turnout was the highest since 1999, with more than 77% of eligible voters casting ballots, according to the Central Elections Committee. Over 7 million people were eligible to vote, and tens of thousands reportedly arrived from overseas.

Israel’s president will be tasked with asking the party leader with the best prospect of forming a government, usually one with the most seats, to cobble together a coalition. If Netanyahu's right-wing Likud emerges as the largest party, he could claim that right.

Meanwhile, there will be heavy pressure on Eisenkot to reach a deal with the Arab parties, while Netanyahu and his allies are likely to cast any such alliance as illegitimate and even treasonous.

If no one can cobble together a majority coalition, new elections could be held early next year. Israel held five elections between April 2019 and November 2022 because of a similar stalemate.

No single party has ever won an outright majority in the country’s 120-seat parliament, forcing political leaders to forge coalitions. Minority governments are also possible, but they must rely on support or cooperation from parties outside the government to pass legislation.

Netanyahu had warned earlier that Arab parties could make or break the election, saying they were receiving “truly massive support" and heading to the polls in "unprecedented numbers.”

As the exit polls were broadcast, supporters at Eisenkot's party headquarters jumped for joy, chanting his name. Eisenkot said the election results pointed to a “complete lack of confidence” in Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition.

“I will act immediately to carry out the people’s mandate, replace Netanyahu’s government and form a Zionist government committed to military conscription as soon as possible,” Eisenkot said in a statement, referring to the draft of ultra-Orthodox Jews into Israel’s compulsory military.

At Netanyahu's party headquarters, filled mainly with media, the few supporters present chanted Netanyahu's name, draping themselves in flags with his face on them and kissing posters.

Netanyahu’s supporters see him as a steady hand and a consummate statesman who has led Israel through a war of redemption after the country’s darkest hour. They think he is protecting Israel’s security and Jewish identity in the face of international pressure and liberal elites at home.

His detractors see him as a polarizing leader who, beset by an ongoing corruption trial, dragged out the war in Gaza and its hostage crisis for political reasons. They say he is undermining Israel’s independent judiciary and weakening its democratic underpinnings. And they accuse him of abetting the system that has allowed ultra-Orthodox religious Jews to avoid military conscription.

“The present government is driving the country into the ground,” voter Angela Bengur said in Jerusalem.

Eisenkot is viewed by supporters as a capable leader with sterling security credentials who, along with his likely governing partners, could act as a bulwark against creeping illiberalism. As someone personally touched by the conflict — his son and two nephews were killed in Gaza — his backers believe that he feels deeply the pain that still courses through Israel.

Parties that likely would support Eisenkot have vowed to improve Israel’s international standing and work to conscript ultra-Orthodox men while bolstering the independence of the judiciary.

The elections are about “who serves and who evades service — who takes an active part in building this country and who doesn’t,” said voter Nisso Shitrit in Tel Aviv's Jaffa neighborhood.

The election is Israel's first national vote since the Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war in Gaza and related conflicts. In Tel Aviv, families of some killed on Oct. 7 or former hostages held a moment of silence during the vote.

“Remember all those whose voices are no more,” said Yona Adam, whose daughter Mapal Adam was killed.

Israel has found itself increasingly isolated over its conduct in Gaza and the West Bank. Public support among Americans has plummeted, and partners in Europe and elsewhere have slapped sanctions on Israel. Netanyahu faces an international arrest warrant over alleged crimes against humanity in Gaza, allegations he denies.

Also hanging over the election were lingering tensions with Iran. Netanyahu ramped up threats ahead of the vote, warning Tehran it would face “a devastating blow” if it attacked Israel.

Associated Press writers across Israel contributed.