Journalist Rana Mamdouh’s whereabouts remain unknown after 10 hours

The whereabouts of Mada Masr journalist Rana Mamdouh remain unknown more than 10 hours after she was detained at the Alamein toll station, escorted to the city’s police station and held without a legal basis.

Rana was on her way to Ras al-Hikma this morning when she and the driver of the car she was in were stopped at a temporary checkpoint at the Alamein toll station. She was then questioned on her reasons for traveling to the north coast city and held for an hour at the toll under the pretense that she had “conducted a press interview without a permit.” She was then escorted to the Alamein police station, where communication with her was lost.

Rana’s prolonged detention without recourse to a lawyer or being allowed to contact her family is a legal violation, Mada Masr lawyer Hassan al-Azhari said, adding that her detention is an obstruction of professional duties as she has clearly not violated any laws during the course of her work. Such an obstruction, Azhari continued, contravenes the law regulating the practice of journalism and all professional norms, and as such, relevant authorities must clarify her current legal situation.

Journalists Syndicate head Khaled al-Balshy told Mada Masr that the police’s decision to arrest and then escort Rana to the Alamein police station after she identified herself as a journalist is a grave indication of the way the state treats journalists.

“Rana contacted me as soon as she was arrested,” Balshy said. “I have reached out to various state entities to demand her immediate release. Considering the fact that she was out on assignment, an assignment that she has not completed, her work cannot be scrutinized at this point.” 

On Sunday evening, the Journalists Syndicate Freedom Committee released a statement in solidarity with Rana, calling for her immediate release. Rana’s arrest “while she was on her way to practice journalistic work conveys a negative message and is a dangerous sign regarding the freedom to practice journalism. At a time when [the committee] was anticipating a new decision to release imprisoned colleagues, the manner by which our colleague was arrested raises many questions regarding the issue of detained journalists,” committee representative Mahmoud Kamel said.

Mada Masr continues to face intransigence from authorities that complicates its editorial commitments to reporting accurately and with journalistic integrity on Egypt’s political and economic landscape.

The latest example of this intransigence came in mid-February when the Public Prosecution summoned Attalah for questioning regarding a report published by Mada Masr in October on potential plans to forcibly displace Palestinians to Egypt, despite the fact that Mada Masr removed the report in consideration of the “national security” concerns raised by the Supreme Council for Media Regulation shortly after the time of publishing.

Attalah was released on bail.

The February summons came two days after Mada Masr published an investigation on Ibrahim al-Argany, the Sinai businessman and head of the Union of Sinai Tribes, and his control over the entrance of aid and the “coordination” business at the Rafah crossing, which sees his companies accept payment to secure movement into Egypt from Gaza.