Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi enacted a law on Sunday that targets those responsible for "false" reporting on militant attacks. The law, among a number of anti-terrorism motions that were approved, are part of the government's efforts to effectively curb the spread and influence of extremist Muslim groups in Egypt, according to The Times of Israel.
The law on "false" reporting of militant attacks sets a minimum fine of 200,000 Egyptian pounds (about $25,000) and a maximum of 500,000 pounds (about $62,500) for any party caught publishing accounts and figures contrary to official government statements.
Egyptian officials – especially the military – have been infuriated by the media after a massive jihadi attack in the Sinai Peninsula last June where it was widely quoted that dozens of troops have been killed in the attack. The official government statistics state that only 21 soldiers had been killed along with scores of jihadists, reports The Guardian.
Critics of the law have already emerged, each stating that the new law and the fines may very well shut down small newspapers around the country while preventing larger ones from reporting in a free and unrestrained manner.
The fines are already a step down from what the administration had originally intended: the addition of a jail sentence for offenders.
The government has expedited the act after the state prosecutor was assassinated in a car bombing in June, just days befoe the Sinai attack, reported HNGN.
