PEN’s Free Expression Digest brings you a daily curated round-up of the most important free expression-related stories from around the web. Please send your feedback and suggestions to [email protected]

Egypt arrests countless Facebook page administrators
Egyptian security forces have arrested the administrators of 47 Facebook pages that the interior ministry says are run by the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, intensifying a crackdown on dissent as the fifth anniversary of a 2011 uprising approaches. Following the revolt that ended Hosni Mubarak’s 30-year rule, the Muslim Brotherhood emerged as the most popular group in elections held after the uprising, but was then banned and deemed a terrorist organization. It was not clear how many people managed the 47 pages. REUTERS UK

Azerbaijani activist detained in Baku
An activist from Azerbaijan’s opposition Popular Front Party has been detained in Baku. Turan Ibrahim was arrested by at least seven police officers near his house on Jan. 13, his brother said. The arrest came as protests broke out in a handful of districts across Azerbaijan in the latest sign of mounting frustration over joblessness, price hikes, and other economic woes in the oil-rich Caucasus country. RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY

Indian authorities arrest two in murder of RTI activist
India’s Central Bureau of Investigation has arrested two accused in connection with the murder of Right to Information activist Premkant Jha, who was shot dead by bike-borne assailants while on his way home in February 2012. The accused have been identified as Baburao Ramanna and Umesh Sankhe, both local builders and developers. “Ramanna and Sankhe were angry with Jha as he had filed several RTI applications regarding the legality of a number of their construction projects,” said a CBI source. THE HINDU

Poet Omar Hazek denied exit from Egypt
Reports have surfaced that Egyptian authorities have today refused acclaimed poet Omar Hazek permission to travel to the Netherlands. Hazek was on his way to The Hague to accept the 2016 Oxfam Novib/PEN Award for Freedom of Expression. He was detained at Cairo airport, questioned, and later released after his passport was confiscated by airport authorities. PEN INTERNATIONAL

Campaign launched to save cop-beaten journalist
Ugandan journalists have launched a campaign to help fellow correspondent Andrew Lwanga, who was beaten by a senior police officer in the line of duty early last year. Lwanga requires $55,000 for an operation on his spine in the U.S. “We are calling upon all journalists and well-wishers to help us save a friend because he badly needs the surgery,” said Kerry Mwejje, a colleague and digital rights activist. NEW VISION

Writers unite in support of jailed Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh
Saudi Arabia is hardly a place for writers. The country’s strict dictatorial regime and dubious human rights record are notorious. And one poet, Ashraf Fayadh, has found himself on the wrong side of the country’s Islamic Sharia law. He was arrested in 2013 and has subsequently been sentenced to death for apostasy. Today, writers in 43 countries are taking part in an initiative to support the artist. DEUTSCHE WELLE