CAIRO, Egypt: An Egyptian court has ordered the closure of independent news outlet Mada Masr after convicting its editor-in-chief of running a website without a license, in a fresh setback for press freedom in the country.

Lina Attalah, the publication's founder and editor, was released after paying a fine worth about $53,400. She was detained for seven hours after the verdict, and her whereabouts were unknown during that time, according to Mada Masr.

Mada Masr is one of Egypt's few remaining independent news organizations. It reports on corruption, the military's growing influence, and human rights abuses in a country where authorities tightly control newspapers and television stations. Before the hearing, Human Rights Watch described the prosecution as an escalation of attacks on independent media.

Attalah's lead lawyer, Hassan el-Azhary, said the publication planned to appeal against the closure order.

Amnesty International condemned the ruling, saying: "Today's decision represents a crushing blow to press freedom in Egypt and marks a dark day for independent journalism in the country." The organization said the fine, closure order and seizure of property sent a warning that critical reporting would not be tolerated.

While completing Attalah's release paperwork, her lawyers discovered that she had been sentenced in absentia in 2024 to one year in prison for spreading false news and operating an unlicensed website. The 44-year-old journalist plans to appeal that conviction, Mada Masr said. The appeal hearing is scheduled for November 11.

During the October 27 hearing at a Cairo misdemeanor court, the judge rejected the defense's procedural requests and ordered lawyers to present their closing arguments immediately, according to Hossam Bahgat, head of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, who attended the session.

When Attalah's eight lawyers refused, the judge appointed another lawyer whom they did not know. The move prompted objections from the defense team and Attalah. The judge also refused to record her objection to the appointment, Bahgat said.

State security prosecutors had summoned Attalah for questioning the previous week over allegations of publishing false news and operating without a license. Prosecutors then sent her to trial on the licensing charge.

Mada Masr said it first applied for a license in 2018 but never received a response. Authorities have blocked its website inside Egypt since 2017. The publication said the latest case was the sixth brought against it or its journalists in six years.

Amnesty International and 118 civil society groups and independent media organizations worldwide urged Egyptian authorities to stop targeting Mada Masr and grant it a license.

Khaled Elbalshy, head of Egypt's Journalists Syndicate, said the organization supported Attalah's case and called it a warning against continued restrictions on the press.

The case comes amid wider pressure on independent journalism. On October 27, prosecutors extended the pre-trial detention of six journalists from investigative platform Matsadaash by another 15 days.

The journalists were arrested in late September on charges including joining and financing a terrorist group and spreading false information. Egypt ranked 169th among 180 countries in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders.