Ibrahim Eissa

Ibrahim Eissa (; born 9 November 1965) is an Egyptian journalist and TV personality best known for co-founding the popular Egyptian weekly Al-Dustour. He is currently editor-in-chief of Al Tahrir, which he co-founded in July 2011.

Early life and education Ibrahim Eissa was born in November 1965 in Quesna in the Monufia Governorate in Egypt. His father was an Arabic teacher. When he was 11, he published his first magazine, Al Haqiqa, which he arranged to print himself and distributed by hand to local schools and newsstands. When he was 17, during his first year at the Cairo University School of Journalism, Eissa began working for the magazine Rose al-Yūsuf, becoming its youngest editorial secretary. Although a state-run magazine, it was reputed for its openness to normally taboo topics as well as its leftist and nationalist opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood and the Gamaa Islamiyya. However, within a year of his refusal to support the 1990 Iraqi invasion, he was forced to resign from his political editorship and assume the literary editor position.

Career

Al-Dustour and Ala El- Qahwa A private publisher named Essam Fahmi Ismail approached Eissa's coworker Adel Hammouda about starting a journalistic enterprise of some kind but was rebuffed. He then approached Eissa and the two created the weekly newspaper Al-Dustour under a foreign license in 1995. The paper took a critical approach towards the Egyptian regime that was unique at the time, particularly in its focus on government corruption, quality of governance, and Egypt's relationship with Israel. The paper contained contributions from all ends of the political and religious spectrums, including Marxists, Nationalists, and Nasserists. The paper was very influential in the evolution of the Egyptian press—it became popular for other papers to "dustourize" their pieces (the word "dustourize" itself was used) by taking a stronger stance.

The paper was shut down in February 1998 after it published a death threat from the Gamaa Islamiyya against three Coptic businessmen. Prior to its shutdown, three issues had been confiscated for their controversial nature.

On 5 December 2007, Eissa faced trial in Algalaa' Court after he published an article about Mubarak's health problems. On 31 March 2008, he was found guilty of damaging the national economy after the Central Bank testified that $350 million in investments left Egypt in the days after the article was published. On 28 September 2008, the Boulak Abul Ela Appeals Court upheld the guilty verdict, but reduced Eissa's sentence to two months in prison, charging Eissa with reporting and publishing false information. The appeal was originally brought by state security prosecutors, who argued that the six-month term was too light. Eissa was quoted as saying, "This sentence opens the gates of hell for the Egyptian press." NGOs such as Amnesty International and the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information denounced the verdict. On 8 October 2008, Eissa's sentence was pardoned by Mubarak. Earlier in the same year, Eissa was fired from his position as host of Baladna bel Masry, an ONTV political talk show.

Post-Mubarak media projects Since the 2011 Egyptian Revolution, Eissa has been involved with two media projects. The first is the launch of a private satellite television channel titled Al Tahrir TV Channel in February 2011, and the second is the launch of a daily newspaper, Al Tahrir, in July 2011. Though carrying the same name, the television channel and the newspaper are separate media projects.

El Tahrir TV channel Al Tahrir TV Channel was the first television channel in Egypt to be launched following the resignation of Mubarak. It was launched in February 2011. Ibrahim was one of three owners of the channel, along with Ahmed Abu-Haiba and Mohamed Morad. However, in October 2011, following serious financial challenges, Eissa sold his share of the channel to two businessmen who co-owned Eissa's share, Nabil Kamel and Dr. Said Tawfiq. Ibrahim Eissa continued working with the channel, serving as a television reporter for the show Fil Midan. However, in February 2012 he quit the show and is now no longer associated with the channel.

In December 2011, Tawfiq sold his share to businessman Suleiman Amer, who now owns 84% of the channel's shares. The channel was widely criticized by its top television reporters, including Eissa, out of speculation that the new channel's administration was serving the interests of the Egyptian state. Like Al Tahrir TV, the newspaper is named after Tahrir Square. The ownership of the newspaper is divided between Eissa and publisher Ibrahim al-Moalem, who also works with another daily independent newspaper, Al-Shorouk, as its chairperson.

Mubarak trial testimony Eissa has been criticized by activists for shifting his testimony during Mubarak's 2011 trial and 2014 retrial. Eissa originally accused police forces of shooting protesters, but said in the retrial he did not witness shootings. and only called on security authorities to use necessary measures to contain chaos.

Awards In 2008, Eissa was given the Gebran Tueni Award in Lebanon. In March 2011, Eissa was awarded an Index on Censorship's 2010 Freedom of Expression Award. The award has been described as commemorating the many who put their lives at risk for their right to express their opinions. Eissa was characterized as a "one-man barometer of Egypt's struggle for political and civic freedom". He dedicated the award to Tahrir Square.

His novel, Our Master, was shortlisted for the International Prize for Arabic Fiction in 2013.