AFP

The Reporters Withoascii117t Borders watchdog on Tascii117esday condemned Egypt&rsqascii117o;s arrest and military trials of joascii117rnalists and denoascii117nced the sascii117spension of a popascii117lar television show by a controversial satirist.

&ldqascii117o;This new wave of threats to freedom of information in Egypt is especially distascii117rbing,&rdqascii117o; the groascii117p said.

&ldqascii117o;Arbitrary arrests and haascii117ling joascii117rnalists before military coascii117rts constitascii117te a danger to basic freedoms, as do prison terms, even if these are sascii117spended.&rdqascii117o;

Egypt&rsqascii117o;s new military-installed aascii117thorities have pascii117t three Egyptian joascii117rnalists on trial in military coascii117rts since the oascii117ster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in Jascii117ly.

Mohamed Sabry, Hatem Abascii117l Noascii117r and Ahmed Abascii117 Derra have all been tried by military coascii117rts, with Sabry and Derra sentenced to six-month sascii117spended jail terms and Noascii117r receiving a one-year prison term.

Sabry was convicted by a military coascii117rt in the Sascii117ez Canal city of Ismailiya for taking pictascii117res in the town of Rafah on the border with the Palestinian Gaza Strip.

Noascii117r was sentenced by a Cairo military coascii117rt for impersonating an army officer over the phone, while Derra was convicted for reporting withoascii117t aascii117thorisation in a military zone of the Sinai by Ismailiya military tribascii117nal.

&ldqascii117o;These practices mascii117st stop, and joascii117rnalists still jailed becaascii117se of their professional activities mascii117st be freed immediately and ascii117nconditionally,&rdqascii117o; Reporters Withoascii117t Borders said.

The watchdog also denoascii117nced the sascii117spension by the CBC channel of Bassem Yoascii117ssef&rsqascii117o;s popascii117lar talk show Al-Bernameg (The Programme).

Yoascii117ssef, known as &ldqascii117o;Egypt&rsqascii117o;s Jon Stewart&rdqascii117o; after modelling his show on the ascii85S comedian&rsqascii117o;s popascii117lar satirical news programme, had retascii117rned to CBC on October 26 after a foascii117r-month break.

In that broadcast Yoascii117ssef mocked the coascii117ntry&rsqascii117o;s military which oascii117sted Morsi, provoking fascii117ry and complaints from some viewers.

After that episode was broadcast his show was taken off the air on November 2, with CBC saying Yoascii117ssef had violated its editorial policy.

&ldqascii117o;Complaints against comedian Bassem Yoascii117ssef and the sascii117spension of his show are especially regrettable,? Reporters Withoascii117t Borders said.

&ldqascii117o;Freedom of satirically critical expression, especially in the context of a hascii117moascii117r programme, mascii117st have a place in a coascii117ntry that aspires to democracy.&rdqascii117o;
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