And Avaaz joins the list of banned websites in Egypt !!! "Updated"

And the banned websites list in Egypt is getting longer and bigger per day now.
According to the Cairo-based Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression "AFTE"", we are speaking about more than 60 websites.
They were more than 50 websites yesterday and the day before they were more than 40 websites whereas last week they were only more than 20 websites !!!

The most noticeable websites that joined the list this time are Avaaz and January News Portal !!
Yes, the famous U.S-based online petition and civic organization website is banned in Egypt for a reason beyond my knowledge or imagination.
Online Petitions do not really change things in Egypt or really effective.
I can't remember the last Avaaz petition that forced the Egyptian government to do something.

This is not a thing to belittle Avaaz and its role in the world and in other countries where it really makes a change.

Then we got January News Portal or Yaniar Gate which is founded and headed by Nasserite journalist Amr Badr.

Former Presidential candidate Hamdeen Sabhi at the sit-in of
the Journalists Syndicate "Mohamed El-Raay"

Yaniar Gate is just like Al-Bediah and Al-Badil, an independent news website that is totally against the Tiran and Sanafir deal as well the Egyptian regime's policies.

Amr Badr, the current head of the Freedoms Committee in Egypt's Journalists Syndicate has his share of trouble with the regime because of his opposition to the Tiran and Sanafir islands deal.

Currently, Amr Badr and other leading members of the Journalists syndicate including the trio of the previous Journalists Syndicate board are having a sit-in against referring the deal to the parliament and how the Legislative Committee passed in disgusting farce.

The sit-in at the Journalists Syndicate earlier "Mohamed El-Raay"

A couple of political parties have declared their members would start a sit-in at their headquarters to object the deal and it is being passed in the House of Representatives like Nasserite El-Karma and Egyptian Social Democratic party.

Back to the ban list.

Interestingly, the website of Sawt Al-Oma weekly newspaper has been blocked as well !!
I am quite amazed because the opposition semi-tabloid newspaper has been acquired by non-other than the pro-regime golden boy and steel tycoon turned media tycoon Ahmed Abu Hashima in November for LE 12 million.
Needless to say, the editorial policies of the newspaper has changed completely since then to become Pro-Sisi !!!!
This is the third printed newspaper in Egypt to have its website to be blocked in less than two months !!
Sawt Al-Oma has been unblocked on Thursday.
But on the same day we know that Revolutionary Socialists' official news website "The Socialist" has been blocked.

Now, most of the websites of Qatari and Muslim Brotherhood are blocked. Most famous Turkish websites including the Pro-Golen sites ironically are blocked too. Anyhow, I think the current wave of blocks will include websites speaking about the how the Isles of Tiran and Sanafir are Egyptian !!

It is just sad and frustrating.

Up till now, there has been no official statement for real about the ban of those websites. We got only anonymous quoted sources speaking to Egypt's State-owned news agency in MENA from several weeks ago with the first batch of websites.

The National Telecom Regulatory Authority "NTRA" has not issued a single statement about that blocking spree.

I do not know how many websites to be blocked they tomorrow.
Many people fear that the ban may include the social media networks like Twitter and Facebook. I share their fear.