The Egyptian court on November 11 postponed the rehearing of the case against Linda Attalah, the editor of the independent news site Mada Masr, to November 18. She is facing legal action for publishing false news and operating an unlicensed website.
Significance of the Mada Masr Case
The Mada Masr case is considered a test for the health and survival of independent journalism in Egypt, the largest Arab country by population. Human rights groups are closely monitoring this case and see it as indicative of the challenges faced by independent media.
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The Mada Masr news site announced that Linda Attalah's defense submitted a request for a judge change on November 11, as the current judge had ruled against her in a previous trial on October 27. The court has postponed consideration of this request for a week to allow the appeals court to decide on the judge change.
Judge's Ruling and Its Consequences
In last month's ruling, the judge sentenced Linda Attalah to pay a fine of 3 million Egyptian pounds (approximately $56,200) and ordered the closure of the Mada Masr news site. This ruling came after a hearing regarding a separate charge of operating the website without a license.
Mada Masr, along with several other independent websites, has stated that they applied for a license under the media law enacted in 2018, but have yet to receive any official decision on this matter. Attalah's lawyers stated last month that the court rejected their requests during the case review session and instead appointed a lawyer to represent her, which Attalah opposed.
The Supreme Judicial Council of Egypt later rejected suggestions that the trial was unfair. An appeal regarding the October 27 ruling is scheduled for November 25.
Linda Attalah was sentenced in absentia to one year in prison in 2024, and she only learned of this ruling on October 27, when she was being released following the closure order of her site. Egyptian authorities have yet to respond to requests for comment on the Mada Masr case or broader press freedom issues, but they have repeatedly stated that the government is committed to freedom of expression and that media must operate within the law and respect national security.
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