Egypt releases Al Jazeera journalist after nearly four years in detention

Hisham Abdelaziz, a producer with Al Jazeera’s Mubasher channel, has been released by the Egyptian authorities nearly four years after his initial arrest.

He was taken into custody in June 2019 while travelling from Qatar to Egypt for a family visit and was charged with “publishing false news” and “joining an outlawed group”.

Although he was released in December of the same year, he was later detained again on another case.

According to Al Jazeera, Hisham Abdelaziz was released from pre-trial detention by the Egyptian authorities.

However, two other Al Jazeera journalists, Bahauddin Ibrahim and Rabie al-Sheikh, are still being held on similar charges.

Egypt’s closer ties with Qatar, the gas-rich Gulf emirate, have been attributed to its attempts to sell state assets to wealthy Gulf nations as it grapples with economic challenges.

Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) identifies Egypt as one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, with over 20 reporters currently behind bars.

Human rights organizations also report that there are around 60,000 political prisoners in Egypt, with many held on charges of “spreading false news”.

Egypt ranks 168th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, according to RSF.
1 year ago
Adeyinka Arutu

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