Egypt refers popular TikToker to criminal court
The El-Waily Prosecution Office has ordered the referral of a TikTok user in Egypt to criminal trial on charges of inciting immorality and debauchery, and publishing videos that violate societal values.
The General Administration for Combating Morality Crimes, in coordination with the Cairo Security Directorate's investigations unit, successfully arrested the TikToker, identified as Z.T., in the El-Wayli area after tracking his hiding place.
He faces charges of publishing indecent videos that contradict the values and traditions of society, committing acts contrary to public morals, and broadcasting content that incites immorality and debauchery via social media platforms.
Authorities found 1700 Egyptian pounds and two mobile phones in his possession, suspected of being used to broadcast the illegal videos.
An official report of the incident was filed, and the accused was referred to the relevant authorities who initiated investigations with him, in preparation for taking the necessary legal procedures.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mada
5 days ago
- Mada
Global March to Gaza coordinator arrested amid ongoing police crackdown
The Global March to Gaza called on Egyptian authorities to release Saif Abukeshek — one of the initiative's coordinators — along with all other detainees who had traveled to Egypt to participate in the march. In a statement issued Tuesday, the organizers condemned the continued targeting of foreign delegations by Egyptian police. This comes despite their announcement on Monday that all planned activities in Egypt had been suspended and that the coordinators were committed to operating within the bounds of the law. Nonetheless, plainclothes police officers continued to track down and forcibly remove participants 'from hotel rooms, cafes, shops and the streets, without cause or explanation,' according to the Tuesday statement, a copy of which Mada Masr reviewed. On Monday afternoon, three participants were targeted while sitting at a cafe in Cairo: Norwegian nationals Jona Selhi and Huthayfa Abuserriya and Spanish-Palestinian Saif Abukeshek. The three, the statement read, were 'blindfolded, handcuffed, interrogated and brutally beaten,' with no formal charges. Selhi, who was allowed a brief phone call while in police custody, relayed the information. The two Norwegians were later transferred to a detention center at Cairo International Airport, according to the statement. Abukeshek remains in custody, with his whereabouts still unknown. Selhi said Abukeshek was 'singled out' for particularly severe abuse. Egyptian authorities also deported eight Tunisian activists on Tuesday. One of the deportees wrote on Facebook that they were held for six hours at Cairo International Airport, during which they were subjected to insults and violence before being deported under police escort. Their passports, he wrote while on the plane, were confiscated, only to be returned upon arrival in Tunisia. In a statement issued Monday, the Global March to Gaza said that Egyptian authorities detained two members of its international coordination committee — French national Hicham El Ghaoui and Canadian national Manuel Tapial — before deporting them. Later that day, the coordinators instructed all participants to leave Egypt. They explained that the decision came after they met the day before with embassies of the participating delegations and received mixed responses — some were supportive and willing to defend the marchers, while others were not. The Global March to Gaza, launched this month, brought over 4,000 activists from more than 80 countries to Egypt in an attempt to peacefully approach the Rafah border crossing and draw attention to Gaza's deepening humanitarian crisis. However, since their arrival, they have faced intimidation and arrests from Egyptian authorities which ultimately forced the organization to instruct delegations to leave Cairo earlier this week.
Mada
6 days ago
- Mada
Global March to Gaza tells delegations to leave Egypt, demands release of arrested participants
Coordinators of the Global March to Gaza instructed all participants on Monday to leave Egypt, putting an end to the initiative that sought to protest the ongoing genocide, blockade and continued occupation of Palestinian land at the Rafah border crossing. They also called on Egyptian authorities to release members of the march's foreign delegations arrested in Cairo over the past weekend, and who included two of the lead march organizers. The statement sent today to the participating foreign delegations, a copy of which Mada Masr obtained, says the instruction to leave came after the coordinators asked for support from the relevant embassies and received mixed responses. Egyptian authorities have met the arriving delegations over the past week with arrests, deportations and assault. In the statement, the coordinators explained that the decision came after they met yesterday with embassies of the participating delegations and received mixed responses, as some of them were supportive and willing to defend the marchers, while others were not. The statement stressed that the coordinators were committed to operating within the law, and organizing the march without permission was not an option for them. The Egyptian government did not provide them with a clear answer during the direct communications with the march coordinators, and participants continue to face arrest and deportation, the statement said. While participants in the march floated alternatives to the march, such as organizing a demonstration in support of Gaza outside the German Bundestag or the International Court of Justice in The Hague, according to internal correspondence reviewed by Mada Masr, the coordinators preferred to focus on getting all march participants out of Egypt first, to ensure their safety. In an earlier statement from today, obtained by Mada Masr, the coordination team called on the Egyptian authorities to release all participants arrested in recent days, after two of the lead coordinators were arrested over the weekend, in preparation for their deportation from Egypt. According to the statement, Egyptian authorities arrested two members of the march's international coordination committee, French national Hicham El Ghaoui and Spanish national Manuel Tapial, over the weekend. Tapial was deported in the early hours of Monday morning, while Ghaoui is still being processed for deportation, the statement said. The statement also confirmed that the organizers have been in contact with the relevant embassies, urging them to intervene on behalf of the participants who were arrested or deported despite their compliance with Egyptian law and their legal and peaceful entry into the country. Security forces arrested dozens of participants in the Global March to Gaza, mostly French and Swiss nationals, on Saturday and Sunday, a source working with a human rights organization previously told Mada Masr. Throughout Sunday, participating delegations circulated warnings from organizers urging activists not to gather in Cairo or engage in any form of protest. 'Even as we monitor these developments, our foremost concern remains with the people of Gaza, who continue to face unimaginable suffering. More actions and initiatives are already underway,' lead march coordinator Saif Abukeshek said in the statement. Although dozens of participants were arrested and deported at the airport before entering Cairo, those who got into Egypt tried to push through with the march, heading to gather in Ismailia on Friday before marching to Rafah. However, those who made it to Ismailia were assaulted by security forces and civilians, forcing them to return to Cairo to avoid the 'escalating violence.'
Mada
14-06-2025
- Mada
Update: Authorities use force to disperse Global March to Gaza participants
The march's organisers posted an urgent call in the evening for all participants to return to Cairo given the 'escalating violence.' One of the participants explained to Mada Masr the escalation that took place throughout the day: 'People started getting stopped at the second checkpoint on the road to Ismailia at around 12:30 am. More people started arriving and getting held up. There were delegations from everywhere, North Africa, France, Netherlands, Switzerland. They took our passports, and we waited for over four hours until we got the passports back. Some people left right there and then. Other people decided to stay. Those who stayed gathered in a square near the mosque. Everyone sat down and we started chanting. At this point, authorities started doing intimidation tactics. Saying either we leave willingly, or we stay and will get beaten up. Everyone was given the option and the Canadian delegation decided to stay. We were chanting and slowly they started spraying the air with something and closing in on us with some soldiers. They sent in infiltrators wearing white abayas and covering their face. They started beating people up and throwing water bottles at people. They had whips and batons and were extremely violent and aggressive. Some people were dragged on the floor. The purpose was to get people to leave.' Earlier on Friday, Egyptian authorities continued to deport several international activists taking part in the march, including foreign individuals who had entered the country via Cairo International Airport the previous day. Deportations took place as activists attempted to travel toward the city of Ismailia from various locations across central Cairo. Organizers from the different countries' delegations had circulated instructions in the morning designating a hotel in Ismailia as the meeting point. Participants were advised to travel individually or in small groups and were explicitly urged not to protest upon arrival. Organizers also confirmed that they remained engaged with Egypt's Foreign Ministry to coordinate forthcoming steps. However, police stopped several activists as they left Cairo. According to testimonies from two Belgian nationals, officers confiscated their passports and initiated deportation proceedings against them. Other participants with US citizenship reported being stopped at the first checkpoint outside Cairo, where they were detained and ordered to leave the country. After being blocked from continuing their journey, they began chanting 'Free Palestine' at the checkpoint. In an update on their Whatsapp channel, the march's organizers reported that police forces have stopped all cars coming from Cairo at a checkpoint 30 km outside the city, forcing anyone carrying a non-Egyptian passport to get off. The update mentioned that activists started a sit-in at the checkpoint. Activists at the checkpoint reported being violently treated by police to forcibly get into a bus. One activist said their passport was taken and they have been waiting for hours under the sun, while some were dragged violently into a bus. Meanwhile, an Irish activist as well as a number of Swiss activists who were bound to take part in the march reported that their colleagues, who had already reached the designated hotel in Ismailia, were detained by security forces and placed, along other protesters, on a bus guarded by armed officers. The bus remains near the hotel in Ismailia as of the time of publication. The Global March to Gaza had aimed to bring around 4,000 activists from over 80 countries, and their original plan was to take buses from Cairo to the city of Arish in North Sinai, then walk the remaining distance to the border town of Rafah, the closest point to Gaza. Organizers said the march's aim is to call for an end to the war and push the aid piled up on the Egyptian side of the border into Gaza, which has been under siege. On Wednesday, Egypt's Foreign Ministry released a statement saying that while 'foreign delegations' are welcome, visiting North Sinai requires permits. Meanwhile, a government source who spoke to Mada Masr on condition of anonymity said that none of the activists will be allowed into Rafah for sovereignty and security reasons. Several activists arriving from different European countries to take part in the march were deported upon arrival at Cairo International Airport, according to the organizers and eyewitness accounts. On another front, security and military forces affiliated with the eastern Libyan authorities halted in the early hours of Friday the advance of the Sumud Convoy, a separate but parallel initiative in which around 1,000 people are travelling by land across North Africa toward Egypt. According to a statement shared via the caravan's WhatsApp channel, security officials claimed the delay was necessary pending formal approval from Benghazi. Efforts to coordinate with Libyan authorities to resume the convoy's advance toward the Egyptian border have been ongoing as of the time of the organizers' most recent statement. According to the organizers, convoy participants are camping at the site where they were stopped — an area lacking basic necessities and with recurring telecom outages. They called on authorities in Benghazi to 'honor their declared welcome of our brave initiative, as stated in yesterday's Foreign Ministry statement, and to receive our convoy.' The organizers also expressed gratitude for the outpouring of support from Libyan communities in surrounding areas, who have provided water, food and tents to sustain the group as they wait for passage. In its statement, the Libyan Foreign Ministry expressed its full support for the convoy and its moral and human position which 'embodies the depth of the Maghreb and Arab world's commitment to the Palestinian cause.' However, the statement also referenced Egyptian authorities, stressing the importance of following existing laws that regulate access to the Rafah border area in Egypt.
