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Al Jazeera journalist Mahmoud Hussein’s detention renewed

March 20, 2017 at 12:38 pm

Al Jazeera journalist Mahmoud Hussein [Twitter]

Egyptian authorities announced on Saturday that they have renewed the detention of Al-Jazeera journalist Mahmoud Hussein for the fifth time. Hussein will be held for a further 45 days.

Hussein was detained in December whilst visiting the country for a holiday. His detention was already renewed in January for 15 days, ‘pending further investigation’, and in February for four days.

He has been accused of “incitement against state institutions and broadcasting false news with the aim of spreading chaos”. Al Jazeera has called on authorities to release him immediately and rejected allegations against him, including a false confession on video.

Read: 7 lawyers sentenced in Egypt for insulting judge

Hussein is one of seven members of Al Jazeera staff that have been arrested in Egypt since 2013. Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy spent 437 days in an Egyptian prison whilst Peter Greste spent over a year.

Former editor-in-chief of Al Jazeera Arabic, Ibrahim Helal, was sentenced to death in absentia in May on the charge of endangering national security.

Egypt is currently the world’s third worst country for imprisoning journalists after China and Turkey.