That’s horrible news. Khaled Hamza, the editor of the Ikhwan Web, the English website of the Muslim Brothers, has been arrested by Mubarak’s Gestapo in Nasr City.
Khaled is one of the most impressive MB activists I’ve come across, and a strong proponent of reaching out to the secular forces in the country as well as encouraging the current wave of blogging by the young MB activists.
My unconditional solidarity goes to Khaled and all the MB detainees. I hope he would be released as soon as possible. My thoughts go out to his wife and children.
UPDATE: Here’s a report in English from Ikhwan Web:
An Egyptian state security force, backed by a huge number of special forces, arrested Khaled Hamza, the manager of the Cairo office of Ikhwanweb, the Muslim Brotherhood”s official English web site. Hamza was arrested in a street in the eastern Cairo district of Nasr City, two minutes after meeting Violit Dagher, the chairperson of the Paris-based Arab Commission for Human Rights. Dr. Dagher is currently in Cairo to continue her campaign protesting against sending Muslim Brotherhood (MB) leaders to the military tribunal.
Doing a huge part of the file of the case of the MB leaders standing before the military tribunal, Ikhwanweb”s Cairo office has recently witnessed huge activities. To give the true picture of the case of the detained MB leaders, topped by engineer Khairat Al-Shater the second deputy chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood along with 39 MB leaders are tried, the Cairo office carried out a huge media coverage and activities which helped international, regional and local human rights organizations and activists get acquainted with the case as a whole.
Engineer Hamza played an essential role in showing this military trial to the international public opinion wit his articles and reports which were published in several international periodicals.
Hamza”s detention comes only a few days before the military tribunal holds its sentencing session to issue a ruling on the yearlong case. His detention aims to silence independent media voices from exposing the tyrannical and repressive practices of the regime, observers said.
UPDATE: Just spoke with Moneim. Khaled was taken to Mubarak’s State Security Police’s notorious HQ in Lazoughly for interrogation, then later transferred to the Prosecutor’s office who sentenced him to 15 days in the Tora Prison. We still don’t know which part of the Gulag he was taken to, but Moneim thinks it’s Mazra’et Tora.