Overview
- A Badr misdemeanor court convicted Ahmed Douma and sentenced him to one year in prison with labour on Wednesday for “spreading fake news,” according to state media and multiple rights groups.
- Douma was detained in April after publishing an article in the London-based Al-Araby Al-Jadeed recounting prison conditions and was held in pretrial detention at 10th of Ramadan prison.
- Amnesty International and other rights groups said the trial was closed to the public, defence requests to inspect prison conditions and hear witnesses were denied, and Douma faced restrictive detention including reduced visits and continuous light exposure.
- Douma previously spent nearly 10 years in prison on politically motivated convictions before a presidential pardon in August 2023 and has since faced repeated SSSP investigations, travel and education restrictions, and multiple interrogations.
- Human rights groups and press advocates called for his immediate release and warned the case shows how Egypt’s 'spreading fake news' law and opaque prosecutions can chill speech and render presidential pardons ineffective.