Egypt, Journalist with Independent News Outlet Mada Masr Arrested

Shady Zalat, 37, a journalist who has worked with the independent Egyptian website Mada Masr since 2014, was arrested at dawn on 23 November in his home in Cairo.

Plainclothes police officers arrived without an arrest warrant and took him away. According to what they told his wife, he was taken to the police station in Giza, but this has not been confirmed yet.

During the raid, laptops, documents, and Zalat’s cell phone were confiscated.

This is the third time this month that Egyptian security forces have been seen around Zalat’s home.

“His arrest marks a further escalation of the repression against journalists in Egypt. Shady hasn’t done anything other than use his words to report. We hold Egyptian authorities responsible for his safety and wellbeing and call for his immediate and unconditional release,” said Mada Masr on their website.