CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian authorities arrested a journalist working for a fact-checking platform after reporting about a plane seized along with its cargo in Zambia after a layover in Cairo, the outlet said.
Security forces arrested Karim Asaad from his home in eastern Cairo’s al-Shorouk neighborhood on Saturday, the platform, Matsda2sh, or Don’t Believe, said in a statement.
The platform accused security forces of attacking Asaad’s wife and threatening their child while detaining the journalist. Asaad’s whereabouts remained unknown, it added.
The platform said security forces had asked Asaad about the extensive coverage of a mysterious plane intercepted in Zambia earlier this month after a stopover in Cairo.
There was no immediate comment from the government.
The Freedoms Committee of the Egyptian press syndicate issued a statement on Sunday urging authorities to disclose Asaad’s whereabouts, investigate allegations of assault against him and his wife and ask for his release.
Zambian authorities said they found more than $5 million in cash and more than 100 kilograms of suspected gold mixed with zinc, copper and nickel on board the plane.
Zambian authorities said six Egyptians along with four from Zambia, the Netherlands, Spain and Latvia have been detained in connection with the mysterious plane.
Matsda2sh is a social media platform that focuses on exposing misinformation. The platform says its journalists are “independent” and “hide their identities” for security reasons. It recently responded to questions about its funding following its work on the seized aircraft, saying it received no government grants.
According to media watchdogs, Egypt is one of the world’s top depositories of journalists, along with Turkey and China. Authorities have been targeting journalists for years as part of a massive crackdown on dissent and government critics.
