Egypt sets retrial date for Al-Jazeera journalists

The Cairo Court of Appeals has set 12 February as the date for the retrial of the two Al-Jazeera journalists still in custody. The retrial will be presided over by Judge Hassan Fareed, according to a judicial source.

Al-Jazeera journalists Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed denied the charges against them when an Egyptian criminal court sentenced them and 18 others to prison terms ranging from 3-10 years for “incitement against the state, spreading false news and aiding a terrorist organisation”. The latter was a reference to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood. The judgement sparked international condemnation as the Egyptian authorities accused the Qatari-owned Al-Jazeera network of supporting the Islamic movement.

In January, the Egyptian Court of Cassation decided to accept the appeal filed by the journalists. On 28 January, the authorities deported Greste to his native Australia. The other two members of what the media call “the Marriott Cell” are still behind bars. Fahmy has renounced his Egyptian citizenship, a move which could see President Al-Sis granting a pardon; he had joint Egyptian-Canadian citizenship. This option is not open to Mohamed, who is an Egyptian citizen.