Journalist to hospital after assault

Al-Masry Al-Youm journalist Ali Zalat was assaulted and beaten unconscious during yesterdays violent crackdown on pro-Gaza demonstrations in Cairo. Despite his bad condition, the police at first put him in a central security transport truck together with detained demonstrators. This only underlines the urgent need for international human rights organizations as well as reporters without borders and similar groups to bring attention to the systematic and sometimes violent attacks on journalists covering protests in Egypt during the last few days. Egyptian journalists need solidarity not only because they are frequently put on trial or sentenced to prison, but also because of the dangers they face in their daily work.