An Egyptian journalist, Mohamed Ashraf, has been charged with joining a terrorist group and spreading false news. This development follows the arrest of six journalists from the independent fact-checking platform Matsadaash last week.
Egyptian authorities accused the Matsadaash journalists of being unlicensed and publishing false news on behalf of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. Ashraf was charged on Sunday after an interrogation and is to be held for 15 days pending investigation. The whereabouts of his five colleagues – Abdallah Qadri, Mohamed Adel, Islam Barakat, Mohamed Mahmoud, and Omar Helal – remain unknown.
Abdelrahman Mansour, co-founder of Matsadaash, denied any association with the Muslim Brotherhood and described the arrests as a significant attack on journalism in Egypt. Over 80 rights groups, including Human Rights Watch, have condemned the arrests and called for the immediate release of the Matsadaash staff.
Journalists in Cairo staged a sit-in on Saturday outside the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate (EJS), demanding the release of their colleagues. The EJS has requested information on the journalists' whereabouts and plans an emergency meeting on Monday.