Egypt orders closure of independent news site Mada Masr

Egypt has ordered the closure of independent news site Mada Masr. Editor-in-chief Lina Attalah was briefly detained and fined over licensing violations before being freed after a $53,400 fine was paid, but she then learned of a one-year sentence passed in her absence. Rights groups condemned the ruling as a major blow to press freedom in Egypt, where independent media face growing pressure.