The Washington Post: Egypt expands its crackdown to include foreigners, journalists and even children

"The Egyptian government is no longer just targeting political opponents and activists, but it sees everybody as a target, including foreigners, the press and even children," the Washington Post said.

A plainclothes security officer asked American student Aaron Boehm, 22, to see his mobile phone, and as soon as the student hesitated a little, the Egyptian officer revealed a pistol under his shirt.

The officer found news articles related to the recent Egyptian protests, Bouham said. "I sent them to my family and friends. They fired me before I was transported in a police car blindfolded for 15 hours and imprisoned for three nights.

Bouham was arrested in what human rights activists have called the biggest crackdown since Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi took office six years ago. To silence dissent and freedom of expression.

Egyptian security forces have arrested more than 4,300 people across the country, including more than 100 foreigners, journalists and even children, since small but extremely rare protests broke out on September 20, according to the Egyptian Independent Commission for Rights and Freedoms.

Organized campaign
The government has organized sophisticated cyberattacks on mobile phones for activists and journalists, enabling it to read e-mails and files, track locations, identify people and, in some cases, arrest people, according to a report by the US checkpoint software company, which found the attacks. It was linked to the Ministry of Communications and Egyptian intelligence services.

In central Cairo and Alexandria, security men and informants set up unofficial checkpoints and randomly stopped people, demanding to see their mobile phones and check their accounts on social media.

"Checkpoints are a very brutal form of monitoring people's behavior," says Egyptian researcher Hussein Baume. "Anyone arrested is considered to be an enemy of the state or a terrorist until proven innocent."

The United States, which provides $ 1.3 billion a year in military aid to Egypt, has not made any public criticism of these abuses. President Donald Trump is a staunch supporter of Sisi, seen as the most authoritarian leader in Egypt's modern history.

The newspaper said a statement issued by the Egyptian prosecutor said he had questioned more than 1,000 people and found that many of them had been "tricked" through fake social media sites and the forces conspiring against Egypt.

Liaison Officer
Buham, a student studying Arabic at the University of Edinburgh, said they asked him about his CIA contact after they accused him of communicating with a foreign country and threatened to arrest his Egyptian friends and fear that he would never see his family again unless he confessed to being a spy.

After removing the gang from his eyes, Boehm said he saw blood-sticks outside his cell and heard screams in other parts of the prison.After a Jordanian caught him in his cell, he revealed bruises and said he was beaten and given electric shocks.

Bohm said he was not physically tortured, but the guards played "mental games" with him. He was then allowed to speak by telephone with a US embassy officer for the first time in two days, before being transferred to another prison with about 30 young men from Yemen, Sudan and other countries.

Spreading false news
Since Sisi's 2013 coup against Mohamed Morsi, the country's first democratically elected president, Egypt has seen tens of thousands of dissidents and critics jailed, extra-judicial killings and torture increased and hundreds of websites critical of the regime have been blocked.

The latest wave of repression came after businessman Mohamed Ali posted online videos accusing Sisi and his generals of stealing taxpayers' money to build palaces and villas.

Although Sisi has publicly denied allegations of corruption, the videos aired by Mohamed Ali touched a chord among millions of Egyptians frustrated by rising prices, cuts in subsidies and other economic problems, while Sisi has spent billions of dollars on large infrastructure projects.

Social media, which helped fuel the January 25, 2011 revolution against President Hosni Mubarak, became the target of an official campaign.Hundreds of people, including some tourists, were arrested for criticizing the government on Facebook or Twitter for spreading “fake news” and tarnishing the country's image.

"There is a deep belief within the security services that information posted on social media is more dangerous to the regime and a threat to its security and stability than terrorism," Lutfi said.

Since September 20, according to human rights groups, security forces have arrested 11 journalists, 25 politicians and academics, on charges related to terrorism and “spreading false news.” There are at least 111 children, aged between 11 and 17, among those detained.

Activists said nearly two-thirds of the children face charges of being members of a terrorist group or social media abuse, although many do not have mobile phones.

"They are redefining the terrorist to include anyone who opposes the state or Sisi," Baomi said. At least seven foreigners have been arrested and forced to "confess" to a pro-Sisi television channel that they were part of a foreign plot to topple the president.