A rights organization in Egypt said on Friday that "the authorities arrested 10 journalists within two months, despite local and international calls for the immediate release of the detainees, for fear of infection with the Corona virus."
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (non-governmental, based in Cairo) explained in a statement that the authorities recently prevented visits to prisons and contacts between the detainees and their families, which raises concerns about the safety of the detainees.
Egypt usually faces criticism over the arrest of opposition journalists and politicians in issues of opinion and expression, but Cairo repeatedly stresses providing all legal guarantees and rights for prisoners without discrimination.
The statement confirmed that 10 journalists were arrested by the Egyptian authorities during the period from last March 18 to May 18 this year on charges related to opinion and expression.
The statement mentioned the names of the arrested journalists, namely, "Lina Atallah, Sameh Hanin, Haitham Hassan, Moataz Abdel Wahab, Mustafa Saqr, Khaled Ghoneim, Ahmed Allam, Atef Hassab Allah, Mustafa Al-Assar, Moataz and Danan."
The statement pointed out that the editor-in-chief of "Mada Masr" website, Lina Atallah, was the only one released by the authorities a few days ago, on a bail of 2000 pounds (about 130 dollars).
The human rights organization warned of the deteriorating health conditions in prisons, which raises fears about the spread of Corona virus inside places of detention, according to the same statement.
Egypt faces international criticism over restricting public freedoms, but the authorities have repeatedly stressed its eagerness to abide by law and human rights principles.
As of Thursday evening, Egypt had recorded a total of 15,3 cases of Corona virus, including 696 deaths, 4 thousand and 217 recoveries.