Remaining Al-Jazeera Journalists Detained in Egypt Are Released
"I AM FREE," reads a tweet by Baher Mohamed, one of three colleagues who had been imprisoned under accusations of falsifying news. The court has scheduled further proceedings for Feb. 23.
From left, journalists Mohamed Fahmy, Peter Greste and Baher Mohamed in a cage during their trial in Cairo. (AP/Hamada Elrasam)
“I AM FREE,” reads a tweet by Baher Mohamed, one of three Al-Jazeera journalists who had been imprisoned in Egypt under accusations of falsifying news.
Although Peter Greste was released last week, his colleagues Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy were awaiting the verdict in their retrial in Cairo. On Thursday morning, the Egyptian judge presiding over their case “adjourned proceedings until 23 February and ordered that the two men be released,” according to the BBC.
BBC News:
Mr Fahmy and Mr Mohamed appeared in a soundproof glass cage – which allows judges to limit defendants’ ability to protest or interrupt proceedings – at the start of their retrial at the Cairo Criminal Court on Thursday morning… [Judge Hassan Farid] set bail for Mr Fahmy at 250,000 Egyptian pounds ($33,000; £22,000), while Mr Mohamed was freed without bail.
The courtroom erupted in applause when the judge read his decision…Mr Fahmy has given up his Egyptian citizenship to qualify for deportation to Canada, but Mr Mohamed has no foreign passport.
The journalists strenuously deny collaborating with the banned Muslim Brotherhood after the overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi by the military in 2013. They say they were jailed simply for reporting the news.
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To read more about these journalists, read our Truthdigger of the Week piece on them here.
—Posted by Natasha Hakimi Zapata
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