Freedom of Expression
MPs mull removing ‘contempt of religion’ from Penal Code
Egypt
June 13, 2016
MPs mull removing ‘contempt of religion’ from Penal Code
The Egyptian parliament's Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee has postponed its decision on whether to amend the Penal Code by…
AUC student released days after on-campus demonstrations
Egypt
May 10, 2016
AUC student released days after on-campus demonstrations
American University in Cairo (AUC) student Ibrahim Tamer was released on Monday days after a few hundred students demonstrated on…
Intellectuals to ‘burn’ literary works in protest at novelist’s jail sentence
Books
February 21, 2016
Intellectuals to ‘burn’ literary works in protest at novelist’s jail sentence
Authors are planning to “burn” their literary works in protest at the two-year jail sentence handed to author Ahmed Naji…
Popular cartoonist allegedly arrested for unlicensed website, fans argue otherwise
Egypt
February 1, 2016
Popular cartoonist allegedly arrested for unlicensed website, fans argue otherwise
Popular political cartoonist Islam Gawish was arrested and remanded in custody on Sunday, with officials saying it is because he…
Writer’s lawyer files official appeal to blasphemy conviction
Egypt
January 27, 2016
Writer’s lawyer files official appeal to blasphemy conviction
The lawyer representing columnist Fatema Naout filed an appeal with the al-Khalifa Misdemeanor Court on Wednesday against a three-year jail term…
Writer’s jail sentence over blasphemy draws intelligentsia criticisms
Egypt
January 27, 2016
Writer’s jail sentence over blasphemy draws intelligentsia criticisms
Media and intellectual figures have voiced discontent with a three-year sentence handed down on journalist Fatema Naout on Tuesday over…
Columnist Fatema Naout gets 3 years in jail for blasphemy
Egypt
January 26, 2016
Columnist Fatema Naout gets 3 years in jail for blasphemy
A Cairo misdemeanor court sentenced columnist Fatema Naout to three years in jail and a LE20,000 fine over charges of…
Poet arrested as Iran targets free speech: rights group
Middle East
January 9, 2016
Poet arrested as Iran targets free speech: rights group
An Iranian poet who backed a reformist candidate in 2009's disputed presidential election has been detained amid a crackdown on…
FM denounces UN’s statement on Hossam Bahgat’s arrest
Egypt
November 10, 2015
FM denounces UN’s statement on Hossam Bahgat’s arrest
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry denounced on Tuesday a statement made by the United Nations on Monday which voiced concern over the…
ANHRI slams Bahraini journalist’s arrest over Yemen strikes criticisms
Egypt
March 30, 2015
ANHRI slams Bahraini journalist’s arrest over Yemen strikes criticisms
The Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) has slammed the arrest of a Bahraini journalist over a critical statement…