Prosecution revives November case to summon Editor-in-Chief Lina Attalah for questioning

Mada Masr Editor-in-Chief Lina Attalah has been notified to attend an investigation by prosecuting authorities in Cairo next week.

The notification came three days after Mada Masr published an investigative report on the role of businessman Ibrahim al-Argany in coordinating the movement of people and goods on the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

The Journalists Syndicate received word of the summons on Wednesday for Attalah to attend a session on the morning of February 20 at the Cairo Appeals Prosecution. 

The investigation is on the basis of an existing case, opened after the Supreme Media Regulatory Council submitted a report to the prosecution regarding Mada Masr’s October publication of a report on the potential displacement of Palestinians from Gaza into Egypt, said lawyer Hassan al-Azhari, who represents Mada Masr. 

Attalah was due to be investigated by the prosecution in December as part of Case 22/2023 but the session was postponed indefinitely. The prosecution did not specify what the charges were, although Azhari said at the time that he expected the editor-in-chief to be questioned on charges of “operating a website without a license” and “publishing false news intended to harm national security.”

“There is no further information, and it isn’t clear why the investigation was postponed all this time,” said Azhari. 

“We expect that if there is anything new prompting the start of the investigation, then it will be clarified by the prosecution at the beginning of the session,” he continued.

The Supreme Media Regulatory Council held a hearing with Attalah in October after saying it received “numerous complaints accusing the site of publishing inflammatory reports to harm Egyptian national security.”

The council pointed to a Mada Masr report outlining potential scenarios of the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, including their displacement to Sinai, within the context of Israel’s ongoing aggression on the strip.

Following the October hearing, Attalah confirmed that she and Mada Masr are committed to internationally recognized media codes of conduct and strict professional standards. She reiterated the belief of the website’s editorial team in the public’s right to knowledge.

Mada Masr is currently pursuing legal action in a separate case to appeal the media regulatory body’s rejection of its 2018 application for a license and its failure to inform Mada Masr of the application’s rejection.