Cairo - An Egyptian court sentenced a local opposition newspaper editor to two months in prison on Sunday for publishing false rumours about Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's health last year, judicial sources said. Ibrahim Issa, editor-in-chief of the al-Dustor daily, was sentenced in March 2008 to six months in prison for publishing false information about the health of the 80-year-old leader. He had been released after appealing the ruling.
Government prosecutors said the information disturbed public security and harmed the Egyptian economy by causing foreign investors to withdraw their money.
The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the prosecution, calling it an attack on press freedom.
"Issa's prosecution shows how Egypt's authorities shamelessly use the courts to punish outspoken journalists," CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon in a statement. "The court should dismiss this politically motivated case once and for all," he added.
Al-Dustor is an independent opposition newspaper founded in 1995 which is often critical of Egypt's government.
