Ikshef
CAIRO April 25, 2016
Arab Media Freedom Monitor “Ikshef” documented Egyptian security forces detaining and assaulting 47 Egyptian and foreign journalists, mostly in central Cairo surrounding the Egyptian Journalists’ Syndicate “EJS” and Tahrir Square. This took place during the journalists’ coverage of anti-government protests Monday.
About 38 journalists were released later and the rest remain in detention, and one journalist was beaten.
Also, Khaled Al-Balshy, EJS’s Freedoms Committee head, was prevented from following-up security investigations with a large number of detained journalists in Dokki police station.
Security forces prevented the crews of some foreign TV channels from entering Tahrir Square, as happened with BBC crew. Among the attacked journalists are a Norwegian and a Dane. Among the journalists prevented from entering EJS was Mohammad Abdel-Quddos, member of National Human Rights Council.
Some people collaborating with police tried to storm the EJS headquarters in downtown Cairo in protected by security forces, a step denounced by EJS.
Ikshef condemns this attempt to break into EJS, which has always been a platform for all Egyptians facing injustices.
