The Buzz | Lawyer: Egyptian journalist detained on fake news charges

Egyptian authorities detained a prominent local journalist yesterday [Macau time] on charges of spreading fake news, his lawyer said, in the government’s latest crackdown on press freedom.
Mohamed Monir, 65, was taken by plainclothes security officers from his apartment in Giza, his family said in a statement. Over the weekend, Monir had posted surveillance footage on his Facebook page, showing scores of heavily armed police officers breaking into his home to search it when he wasn’t there.
He later appeared before state security prosecutors who ordered his 15-day pretrial detention on charges of spreading fake news, joining a terrorist group and misusing social media, said his lawyer, Nabeh el-Ganadi.
Monir is editor-in-chief of al-Diyar newspaper and a former deputy editor of the pro-government Al-Youm Al-Sabae, or Seventh Day newspaper, among other outlets, his lawyer said.
The interior ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the case.