PEN’s Free Expression Digest brings you a daily curated round-up of the most important free expression-related stories from around the web. Subscribe here. *This mailing list is currently in BETA as we work out the kinks. Please send your feedback and suggestions to [email protected]

Cartoonist is arrested as Egypt cracks down on critics
Popular Egyptian cartoonist Islam Gawish was arrested Sunday on charges of running a website without a license, the Interior Ministry said, in the latest escalation of a campaign to silence the government’s online critics. NEW YORK TIMES

Yemen’s Houthis detain journalist, activists in Sanaa
Gunmen from Yemen’s Houthi movement detained a local journalist and five activists after a raid on an apartment in the capital Sanaa on Saturday, activists said, the latest detention of a reporter in the war-ravaged country. REUTERS

British journalist released after arrest by Burundi security services
Phil Moore, a freelance photographer on assignment for Le Monde, was detained along with the newspaper’s Africa Correspondent Jean-Philippe Rémy and held for 24 hours THE TELEGRAPH

Kazakh activist released after ‘repentance’ letter
Serikzhan Mambetalin, a Kazakh civil rights activist convicted and jailed for inciting social hatred, has been released after “repenting.” He was sentenced to two years in prison on January 22. RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY

Judge rules FBI unlawfully refused to comply with information act requests
The FBI unlawfully and systematically obscured and refused to answer legitimate requests for information about how well it was complying with the Freedom of Information Act (Foia), a Washington, DC court found last week. THE GUARDIAN

If you go to the Super Bowl, you will be surveilled hard
Over the next ten days, 1 million people are expected to descend on the San Francisco Bay Area for the festivities. And, according to the FBI, 60 federal, state, and local agencies are working together to coordinate surveillance and security at what is the biggest national security event of the year. WIRED