Imprisoned political activist Alaa Abdel Fattah goes on hunger strike in Egypt
40-year-old Fattah is reportedly being kept in solitary confinement under heavy supervision without access to books or exercise. He is serving a five-year jail term for “spreading fake news and undermining national security”
Report: UK counterterrorism policy Islamaphobic, violates child rights and other stories
Today we look at the People’s Review of Prevent-UK’s “counter terrorism” strategy, the US DEA’s targeting of Bolivia’s coca growers’ movement, and more
Political prisoner Walid Shawky goes on hunger strike to expose medical negligence in Egyptian jails
Walid Shawky is accused of being a member of a terrorist organization and has been in jail since October 2018. Under the Abdel Fattah el-Sisi regime, tens of thousands of political prisoners have faced harrowing conditions, especially medical negligence
How Pegasus played a role in Israeli diplomacy, Egypt’s betrayed revolution and other stories
Today we look at a New York Times’ report on the Pegasus spyware, the fate of the 2011 Arab Spring protests in Egypt, and more
US approves massive arms sale to Egypt despite deteriorating human rights situation
The USD 2.5 billion arms deal was approved despite calls by rights groups and even some members of Congress for a tougher stance on Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who Donald Trump once called “my favorite dictator”
Egyptian human rights defender Sanaa Seif freed after 18 months in jail
Seif was convicted on March 17 on charges including “spreading fake news”, “using social media to terrorize people” and “disturbing state peace and security” after being held in pre-trial detention since June 2020
Israeli forces, settlers attack Palestinian villages in the West Bank and other stories
Today we look at attacks by Israeli forces and settlers on villages around Nablus, the conviction of a police officer for the murder of Daunte Wright in the US, and more
Egyptian court sentences activist Alaa Abdel Fattah to five years in prison for ‘spreading fake news’
A prominent activist in the 2011 uprising against Hosni Mubarak’s dictatorship, Alaa has been in jail for most of the decade since for opposing the crackdown on dissent carried out by the regime of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
Pegasus report: new evidence of Saudi interference in Yemen war probe and other stories
Today we look at the targeting of a UN investigator with the Pegasus spyware, the sentencing of 3 Egyptian activists to prison, and more
Egypt lifts state of emergency after four years
The state of emergency in Egypt was first imposed in 2017. It gave the authorities powers to arbitrarily arrest people, search houses without warrants, restrict people’s freedom of gathering and movement, and conduct trials in special courts
Trial of prominent Egyptian activists postponed, detention extended by two weeks
The judge postponed the trial of activists Alaa Abdel Fattah, Mohammed el-Baqer, Mohammed Ibrahim and Yahia Hussein Abdel-Hadi for a review, thus extending their detention which has already surpassed the legally allowed two-year limit
US resumes military aid to Egypt even as jailed activist Alaa Abdel Fattah threatens to commit suicide
US president Joe Biden had said during his presidential campaign last year that there will be no more “blank checks for Trump’s favorite dictator,” referring to Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi
- First commercial flight in last six years takes off from Yemen’s Sanaa airport
- Cuba describes easing of US sanctions as “a limited step in the right direction”
- Communists demand ouster of US military and NATO from Turkey
- Women in Croatia say enough to conservative obstruction of right to abortion
- Belgian workers demand scrapping of Wage Margin Act of 1996
