Calls grow for release of journalists held in Cairo

They have been accused of sending reports that were damaging to Egyptian national security and of being in possession of Muslim Brotherhood publications, but have not yet been charged. A fourth journalist who was detained with them was later released. A hearing to review the case is scheduled for Thursday.

There has been an international outcry over the incarceration of the journalists. 

Reporters Without Borders, based in Paris, called for their release and said: “The government established after President Morsi’s removal in July is systematically persecuting news media that it regards as Muslim Brotherhood supporters.” 

More than 40 correspondents from the BBC, The New York Times and CNN have signed a statement demanding the release of the men.

"We, the undersigned correspondents and editors of international news organisations covering Egypt, hereby call for the immediate release of our colleagues Peter Greste, Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, who have been arbitrarily imprisoned since December 29,” the statement said. “We are deeply concerned to learn that our colleagues, all three of whom are well-respected journalists, may face charges that include belonging to a terrorist organisation and spreading false news that could endanger national security.”

On Tuesday Greste’s parents made an emotional appeal to the Egyptian authorities and said the Frontline Club, the International Federation of Journalists and the UK’s National Union of Journalists were joining calls to release the men.

Greste’s father Juris Geste said at a news conference in Australia: “We wish the Egyptian people peace and prosperity. However Peter’s detention is unfair and unjustifiable. We ask the Egyptian prosecutor to release Peter and his colleagues immediately. He and his fellow journalists have done their jobs competently and with a high level of professionalism,” he said. “He’s completely innocent of the various allegations made against him and his colleagues,” he said.

His mother, Lois Greste, said he was still in solitary confinement at the prison. “He has been in solitary confinement, he still is in solitary confinement. The first 15 days he was not allowed out, but he’s now allowed out for four hours to exercise,” she said. “We’re holding up. We’ve got to. We can’t let Peter down. It’s shattering to the whole family and it’s a living nightmare at the moment.”

Greste has been a foreign correspondent since 1991, working for Reuters in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Serbia. He has also worked for ABC, BBC and CNN. He is based in Nairobi, Kenya. ■