An Egyptian journalist has been charged with joining a terrorist group, days after security forces detained the entire staff of the independent news platform Matsadaash. The platform, which means "don't believe" in Arabic, is known for its fact-checking and investigative work.

The arrests and subsequent charges have amplified concerns among rights groups about the state of press freedom in Egypt. Authorities stated that the six journalists from Matsadaash were arrested for operating without a license and for publishing false news on behalf of the Muslim Brotherhood, a group designated as terrorist by Egypt in 2013.

Journalist Mohamed Ashraf was formally charged on Sunday with joining a terrorist group and spreading false news, according to the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights. These charges followed an overnight interrogation focused entirely on material published by Matsadaash. Ashraf has been detained for 15 days pending further investigation.

The whereabouts of the other five detained journalists – Abdallah Qadri, Mohamed Ashraf, Mohamed Adel, Islam Barakat, Mohamed Mahmoud, and Omar Helal – remained unknown at the time of reporting. Their detention raises further alarm about their safety and well-being.

Abdelrahman Mansour, a co-founder of Matsadaash, vehemently denied any affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood. He described the arrests as "one of the gravest attacks on journalism in Egypt's modern history," emphasizing that his colleagues were merely performing their journalistic duties by seeking truth and reporting on critical issues.

Human rights organizations have condemned the detentions, viewing them as part of a broader crackdown on dissent and independent media. The use of terrorism-related charges against journalists is a tactic that critics argue is employed to silence critical voices and suppress investigative reporting in the country.

Matsadaash has built a reputation for rigorous fact-checking and in-depth investigations into topics that often affect the daily lives of Egyptians. Their work aims to provide a counter-narrative to state-controlled media and to hold institutions accountable.

The Egyptian authorities' actions against Matsadaash raise significant questions about the space available for independent journalism in Egypt and the potential risks faced by journalists who challenge official narratives or uncover sensitive information. The international community and press freedom advocates are closely monitoring the situation, calling for the immediate release of all detained journalists.