Egyptian security authorities have arrested all six journalists working for independent investigative platform Matsda2sh, with their families and lawyers reportedly unable to establish their whereabouts.
The journalists were arrested in separate raids between September 28 and 30, 2026. Those detained are Mohamed Ashraf Abu Emeira, Abdallah Qadry, Islam Barakat, Omar Helal, Mohamed Mahmoud and Mohamed Adel. Together, they make up the platform’s entire editorial newsroom.
According to rights organisations, security personnel raided some of the journalists’ homes and confiscated phones, computers and other electronic devices. The Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, which represents the six journalists, said their lawyers and families had not been permitted to contact them.
Egypt’s Interior Ministry later acknowledged the arrests, alleging that the journalists were involved in producing what it described as fabricated news and claimed the platform had links to the banned Muslim Brotherhood. Matsda2sh has denied the allegations. The ministry did not initially disclose where the journalists were being held or provide details of specific charges.
Human Rights Watch said the arrests appeared to amount to enforced disappearance and urged Egyptian authorities to immediately disclose the journalists’ whereabouts and grant them access to their lawyers and families. The Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders have also called for their release.
The arrests have triggered widespread concern among press-freedom and human-rights organisations, with more than 80 groups reportedly condemning the action and calling for the journalists to be released. The incident has also renewed concerns over the operating environment for independent journalists in Egypt.
