Journalists jailed following plane seizure in Egypt

Stewart Shirley, Staff Writer Emeritus

On Aug. 14, Zambian authorities seized a private jet containing $5.7 million, 602 bars (about 280 pounds) of gold, 5 pistols, and 126 rounds of ammunition. The plane was going from Cairo, the capital of Egypt, to Lusaka, the Capital of Zambia, according to the Aero News Network.

Zambian officials later reported that the "gold" was fake, made primarily of copper and zinc, to scam buyers.

12 people aboard the plane were arrested, including six Egyptians, four Zambians, and individuals from Latvia, the Netherlands, and Spain.

Among the people arrested was Shadrick Kasanda, a Zambian National, known as “the man of gold” and “Mr. Money”, who regularly posted photos featuring himself posing next to large amounts of gold.

Additionally, several members of the Egyptian military and two journalists covering the incident were arrested.

According to Karim Asaad, a journalist working for an Egyptian fact-checking company, the plane “made 361 round trips in two years.”

Later, on Aug. 19, Egyptian authorities arrested Asaad at his home. His company, Matsda2sh, which translates roughly to ‘Don’t Believe,’ stated that the authorities "assaulted Asaad’s wife and threatened their child in the process."

Matsda2sh is a social media platform, composed of independent journalists, that aims to debunk misinformation. Such journalists operate anonymously, for safety concerns.

Under the rule of Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, many other journalists and reporters have been arrested. These journalists contribute to a history of suppression of the Egyptian press, and over 200 journalists have been imprisoned under his administration since he took office in 2014.

El-Sisi’s government controls the majority of the Egyptian press, according to Lynsey Chutel and Vivian Yee of the New York Times. The Egyptian government has not commented on the recent events. According to media watchdogs, Egypt is one the world’s most infamous jailers of journalists, along with Turkey and China.