The investigation concerns a report published by the "Mada Masr" news site on a wave of protests in prisons and transfers to remote prisons. The hearing was marked by irregularities and the verdict was issued without Attalah's original defense team presenting its arguments on the substance of the charges.
This statement was originally published on afteegypt.org on 27 October 2026.
The New Cairo Misdemeanor Court ruled on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, to fine journalist Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, EGP 3 million, shut down the website, and confiscate its equipment and devices. The ruling came in Case No. 9072 of 2026, Supreme State Security Investigation Register, in which Attalah is accused of establishing, managing, and operating a website without a license.
The verdict was issued without Attalah’s original defense team presenting its arguments on the substance of the charges, after the lawyers insisted on their procedural requests to review the case file, obtain licensing documents, and hear witnesses. The court rejected these requests.
Before presenting their defense on the merits of the case, the lawyers submitted a series of requests that they said were intended to enable them to examine and challenge the evidence, verify the licensing procedures and notifications related to the website, and determine the specific acts and time period attributed to their client. They stressed that these requests did not constitute an acknowledgment of the accuracy of the information contained in a letter from the Supreme Council for Media Regulation or the validity of the allegations against her.
The requests included permission to review the entire case file and obtain a copy; the inclusion of the complete licensing application file for Mada Masr from the Supreme Council for Media Regulation; and the submission of the original decision rejecting the license, along with identification of the authority that issued it.
The defense also requested the submission of documents relating to a notification allegedly issued on June 2, 2022, and the original document dated October 12, 2022, which bears a signature attributed to Attalah. In addition, the lawyers sought the inclusion of subsequent correspondence concerning the submission of outstanding licensing documents, clarification of the measures taken in response, and, if necessary, the testimony of the relevant official at the Supreme Council for Media Regulation to clarify any findings arising from the documents.
According to Mokhtar Mounir, a lawyer with the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE), the lawyers’ requests were recorded in the hearing minutes, and they also submitted a detailed memorandum outlining those requests and insisted that they be addressed. However, the court refused to grant them and directed the defense to proceed with its oral arguments.
When the lawyers continued to insist on their requests, the court appointed a lawyer to represent Attalah in place of her original defense team. Both the lawyers and Attalah herself rejected this arrangement.
Mounir added that the court recorded that the court-appointed lawyer had requested an acquittal and raised several legal defenses, despite the defense team’s assertion that the appointed lawyer had not actually made those requests or presented those arguments. The court then issued its verdict during the same hearing, without the original defense team presenting its arguments on the substance of the charges.
The defense also reported that Attalah objected to being represented by the court-appointed lawyer, but the court did not respond to her objection and refused to record it in the hearing minutes.
Following the announcement of the verdict, and amid protests from the defense team, security personnel carried Attalah out of the courtroom. According to the information available, she remained in custody following the ruling.
Background
22 October 2026
Egypt’s Supreme State Security Prosecution referred Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, to trial on Thursday, October 22, 2026, before the New Cairo Misdemeanor Court. The hearing was scheduled for Tuesday, October 27, in a case in which she is accused of establishing, managing, and operating a website without a license.
The case was registered under No. 11743 of 2026, Fifth Settlement Misdemeanors, and is listed under No. 9072 of 2026 in the Supreme State Security Prosecution’s investigation records. The referral came one day after the prosecution ordered Attalah’s release on October 21, against bail of EGP 100,000, pending investigations, following an interrogation session that lasted more than six hours.
The Supreme State Security Prosecution had charged Attalah with publishing and disseminating false news and statements, both inside and outside the country, that could undermine national security and public order, in addition to operating a website without a license from the relevant authorities.
21 October 2026, Lina Attalah released on EGP 100,000 bail
On October 21, 2026, the Supreme State Security Prosecution ordered the release of journalist Lina Attalah, editor-in-chief of Mada Masr, on bail set at EGP 100,000, pending investigations in Case No. 9072 of 2026, Supreme State Security Investigations, following an interrogation session that lasted more than six hours.
The prosecution charged Attalah with publishing and disseminating false news and statements, both inside and outside Egypt, that could undermine security and public order, as well as operating a website without a license from the competent authorities.
The investigation concerns a report published by Mada Masr titled “Wave of Protests in Prisons and Transfers to Remote Prisons Following the Postponement of Criminal Procedure Measures.”
It is worth noting that this marks the sixth time that journalists from Mada Masr have been targeted in connection with their professional journalistic work.
