Slashdot Mirror
Egypt Blocks 21 Websites For 'Terrorism' And 'Fake News' (reuters.com)
Ahmed Aboulenein, reporting for Reuters: Egypt has banned 21 websites, including the main website of Qatar-based Al Jazeera television and prominent local independent news site Mada Masr, accusing them of supporting terrorism and spreading false news. The blockade is notable in scope and for being the first publicly recognized by the government. It was heavily criticized by journalists and rights groups. The state news agency announced it late on Wednesday. Individual websites had been inaccessible in the past but there was never any official admission. Reuters found the websites named by local media and were inaccessible. The move follows similar actions taken on Wednesday by Egypt's Gulf allies Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which blocked Al Jazeera and other websites after a dispute with Qatar. From a separate report: "This is not the typical Egyptian regime attitude," Lina Attalah, the editor-in-chief of Mada Masr told BuzzFeed News in an interview in Cairo. "We are used to facing troubles with the regime since we have always chosen to write the stories they don't like to hear. We are used to being arrested or have cases filed against us, but blocking us is a new thing." Mada Masr, since its founding in 2013, has regularly published critical stories of the regime in both English and Arabic.
Shi'ites & Sunnites happen to be an issue in Iraq, as well as Syria & Yemen. It's hardly an issue in Egypt, which has been solidly Sunni since the end of the Fatimid dynasty and the advent of Saladin.
However, al Jazeera does have the track record of being al Qaeda TV, back from the 9/11 days when they used to broadcast those Osama tapes. So Cairo ain't far off in their assessment. While most of the Arab media is obedient towards their own rulers, like the al Thanis in Qatar, they happily work to undermine any regime they dislike. In this case, since they had sympathies w/ the Muslim Brotherhood (the parent organization of al Qaeda), they decided to be to the al Sisi regime what CNN, NBC, ABC & CBS have been to Trump. Except that since they are doing it in support of an actual terrorist organization - the Muslim Brotherhood - they walked right into the trap of the Cairo regime and made themselves liable for such charges. As for fake news, that's par for the course for Middle Eastern news agencies - highlight (to the point of inventing) good things about those they support, and slam the bad things about those they loathe.
I'm no fan of al Sisi, but I'm certainly w/ him on this one.