CAIRO: Egyptian security forces detained prominent 
Egyptian journalist Lina Attalah, the chief editor of leading independent 
news website Mada Masr, after her trial hearing on Tuesday, her outlet 
reported.

A court fined Attalah three million Egyptian pounds (around $53,400) for 
operating the website without a licence, the maximum possible penalty for the 
misdemeanour she was charged with, and ordered Mada's closure.

"Security personnel then surrounded Attalah, lifted her off the ground and 
took her out of the courtroom, where she remains in custody in the 
courthouse," said the independent media, which says it has not received a 
response from authorities about its licence application since 2023.

Her trial marks what rights groups have described as a sharp escalation in 
Cairo's crackdown on press freedom.

It comes weeks after the high-profile arrest of an entire fact-checking 
newsroom, on charges of fake news, which are frequently levelled against 
media seen to be critical of the government.

Hossam Bahgat, head of prominent rights group the Egyptian Initiative for 
Personal Rights (EIPR), was present at the court and gave AFP an account of 
events.

After a brief recess during the hearing Tuesday, the defence team said the 
judge ordered the room cleared except for Attalah and her lawyers, before 
security officers also entered the room.

Attalah's eight-person defence team had made procedural requests denied by 
the court, which then announced it had appointed its own lawyer for the 
journalist.

"In a move that astonished all those present, the judge recorded in the 
official court minutes that the court had appointed a lawyer from the 
Lawyers' Syndicate to represent the defence," Bahgat said.

"Lina herself spoke up to object to this lawyer being appointed to represent 
her, which the judge refused to record in the court minutes."

"In an even more shocking turn, the judge proceeded to dictate motions on 
behalf of this lawyer -- who had not uttered a single word -- and entered 
them into the official record," he added.

The judge then announced the three million Egyptian pound fine and ordered 
Mada's closure "amid shouts and protests from the defence", before Attalah 
was detained by the security personnel in the room.

Her defence team is currently trying to secure her release on bail.

- 'Wiping out' free press -

This is the sixth case brought against Attalah and Mada Masr in as many 
years, but none has ever gone to trial.

Egypt, which has long faced criticism over its crackdown on press freedoms, 
is currently holding 26 journalists in connection with their work, according 
to an EIPR tally.

The current crackdown "can only mean that Egypt's security agencies are 
moving from years of harassing independent media to wiping them out 
completely," Bahgat had told AFP when Attalah was referred to trial.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) branded the court's decision as "outrageous".

"This shameful ruling must be overturned immediately, and Lina Atallah 
released at once!" the group said in a statement.

Earlier this month, six journalists from fact-checking platform Matsadaash 
were charged with terrorism offences, after being arrested in a series of 
raids in September.

EIPR, which represents the journalists, said they had reported torture 
following their arrests, allegations denied by the Interior Ministry.

Authorities accused them of links to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood and 
spreading "rumours and false news" to undermine confidence in state 
institutions and incite people to protest.

They are currently being held on pretrial detention, which rights groups say 
can be extended for months or years before detainees are released or face 
trial.