French journalist arrested over report on Egypt spy operation
France was accused of an "unacceptable" attack on press
freedom Tuesday after a journalist was arrested for reporting on leaked
documents that claimed French intelligence was used to target civilians
in Egypt.
Investigative website Disclose published a series of articles in November 2021 based on hundreds of secret documents.
It said they showed how information from a French counter-intelligence operation in Egypt,
codenamed "Sirli", was used by the Egyptian state for "a campaign of
arbitrary killings" against smugglers operating along the Libyan border.
On
Tuesday, journalist Ariane Lavrilleux's home was searched and she was
arrested for questioning by agents of the DGSI, France's domestic
intelligence agency, Disclose announced on X (formerly Twitter).
It denounced an "unacceptable attack on the secrecy of sources" - a
view quickly backed by the Society of Journalists and Reporters Without
Borders (RSF).
"We fear that the DGSI's actions will undermine the secrecy of the sources," RSF said.
Lavrilleux's arrest was confirmed to French news agency AFP by a source close to the case.
"I
am appalled and worried about the escalation in attacks on the freedom
to inform, and the coercive measures taken against the Disclose
journalist," said Virginie Marquet, lawyer for Lavrilleux and Disclose.
"This
search risks seriously undermining the confidentiality of journalists'
sources," she said, adding that Lavrilleux had "only revealed
information of public interest".
The initial Disclose articles said French forces were complicit in at
least 19 bombings against smugglers between 2016 and 2018 in the
region.
The documents showed there were warnings from officials
within the French government, but the operation was not called into
question, Disclose said.
France's Ministry of the Armed Forces
filed a complaint for "violation of national defence secrecy" following
the publication of the article, and a case was opened in July 2022 by
the Paris prosecutor's office that was then placed in the hands of the
DGSI.
