This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/06/world/middleeast/egypt-warns-journalists-over-coverage-of-militant-attacks.html
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Egypt Warns Journalists Over Coverage of Militant Attacks | Egypt Warns Journalists Over Coverage of Militant Attacks |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| CAIRO — To the list of urgent threats facing Egypt, including militants behind assassinations and car bombings, Egyptian officials have warned of another danger in recent days: journalism, or at least the kind of reporting that strays from the government line. | |
| President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi likened some “media and methods of communication” on Saturday to a “fourth generation of warfare, and even fifth,” and the foreign ministry tried to steer journalists toward the usage of its preferred terms for militant groups, including “terrorists,” “destroyers” and “slayers.” | President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi likened some “media and methods of communication” on Saturday to a “fourth generation of warfare, and even fifth,” and the foreign ministry tried to steer journalists toward the usage of its preferred terms for militant groups, including “terrorists,” “destroyers” and “slayers.” |
| The most sweeping measure came from the cabinet, which included a provision in a draft antiterrorism bill that threatens at least two years in prison for those who contradict official figures, such as death tolls, when reporting on militant attacks. | The most sweeping measure came from the cabinet, which included a provision in a draft antiterrorism bill that threatens at least two years in prison for those who contradict official figures, such as death tolls, when reporting on militant attacks. |
| The official alarm about the news media follows a series of deadly militant attacks that have shaken Mr. Sisi’s government and led to criticism of its counterinsurgency strategy. The government has responded by confidently asserting its dominance over militant groups, and working to ensure that no one says otherwise. | The official alarm about the news media follows a series of deadly militant attacks that have shaken Mr. Sisi’s government and led to criticism of its counterinsurgency strategy. The government has responded by confidently asserting its dominance over militant groups, and working to ensure that no one says otherwise. |
| Officials were particularly incensed by news reports on a jihadist attack on the military on Wednesday in the Sinai Peninsula. Several news outlets, including the website of the flagship state newspaper, Al-Ahram, cited unidentified security officials in reporting that dozens of soldiers had been killed or wounded in the attack, for which the local affiliate of the Islamic State claimed responsibility. | Officials were particularly incensed by news reports on a jihadist attack on the military on Wednesday in the Sinai Peninsula. Several news outlets, including the website of the flagship state newspaper, Al-Ahram, cited unidentified security officials in reporting that dozens of soldiers had been killed or wounded in the attack, for which the local affiliate of the Islamic State claimed responsibility. |
| A military spokesman, in contrast, said that 17 soldiers had been killed, and sharply accused foreign news outlets of inflating the number of casualties. | A military spokesman, in contrast, said that 17 soldiers had been killed, and sharply accused foreign news outlets of inflating the number of casualties. |
| The flash of anger was a measure of the strains Egypt’s military faces: In the past two years, hundreds of soldiers have been killed by well-armed militants who seem to grow more lethal with every assault. | The flash of anger was a measure of the strains Egypt’s military faces: In the past two years, hundreds of soldiers have been killed by well-armed militants who seem to grow more lethal with every assault. |
| But human rights workers said the government had taken advantage of the most recent attacks to push measures that would allow the authorities to control domestic dissent more tightly, furthering a two-year crackdown that has eliminated protests and led to the arrests of thousands of the government’s opponents, including journalists. | But human rights workers said the government had taken advantage of the most recent attacks to push measures that would allow the authorities to control domestic dissent more tightly, furthering a two-year crackdown that has eliminated protests and led to the arrests of thousands of the government’s opponents, including journalists. |
| After a bombing last Monday in Cairo that killed Egypt’s top prosecutor, for instance, Mr. Sisi vowed to speed up prosecutions in terrorism cases. Some found the emphasis puzzling, given that the prosecutor’s assassination appeared to reveal an intelligence and security failure, rather than torpor in Egypt’s courts. | After a bombing last Monday in Cairo that killed Egypt’s top prosecutor, for instance, Mr. Sisi vowed to speed up prosecutions in terrorism cases. Some found the emphasis puzzling, given that the prosecutor’s assassination appeared to reveal an intelligence and security failure, rather than torpor in Egypt’s courts. |
| Mohamed Zarea, who heads the Egypt office of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, said the antiterrorism bill relied on an overly broad definition of terrorism that could apply to extremists, journalists or civil rights groups. One article essentially grants immunity to police officers carrying out the measure’s provisions, Mr. Zarea said, adding that many articles appeared to violate the Constitution. “This is worse than all the drafts we have seen before,” he said. | Mohamed Zarea, who heads the Egypt office of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, said the antiterrorism bill relied on an overly broad definition of terrorism that could apply to extremists, journalists or civil rights groups. One article essentially grants immunity to police officers carrying out the measure’s provisions, Mr. Zarea said, adding that many articles appeared to violate the Constitution. “This is worse than all the drafts we have seen before,” he said. |
| Egypt’s journalist syndicate also condemned the proposed law, saying it imposed “new restrictions” on the news media. One senior government official said that was not the intention. | Egypt’s journalist syndicate also condemned the proposed law, saying it imposed “new restrictions” on the news media. One senior government official said that was not the intention. |
| The provision is just about death tolls, Justice Minister Ahmed al-Zind told Agence-France Presse. “I hope no one interprets this as a restriction on media freedoms,” he said. | The provision is just about death tolls, Justice Minister Ahmed al-Zind told Agence-France Presse. “I hope no one interprets this as a restriction on media freedoms,” he said. |