Egypt Moves Toward Retrial for 2 Jailed Al Jazeera Journalists

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/09/world/egypt-moves-toward-retrial-for-2-jailed-al-jazeera-journalists.html

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CAIRO — Egypt began moving on Sunday toward a retrial of two journalists whose yearlong incarceration has drawn widespread condemnation from Western governments and human rights groups. Defense lawyers raised alarms that the government was failing to fulfill a deal for the imminent release of one of them.

The two journalists, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, were both working for Al Jazeera’s English language network when they were arrested in December 2013. Both were caught up in a sweeping crackdown on dissent after the military ouster of President Mohamed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood. Despite the absence of any publicly disclosed evidence, both were convicted of broadcasting false reports of unrest as part of a conspiracy with the Brotherhood, and each was sentenced to at least seven years in prison.

The two remained in prison after the release of a colleague arrested and sentenced with them, Peter Greste, an Australian, who was deported last week to his home country.

Mr. Mohamed is an Egyptian citizen and ineligible for deportation. But Mr. Fahmy is also a Canadian citizen, and his lawyers and family said Sunday that he had renounced his Egyptian citizenship because officials had told him it would enable his prompt deportation.

A lawyer for Mr. Fahmy released a public letter to President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi stating that “an Egyptian government official” had told his legal team his release was “imminent” after Mr. Greste’s departure last week. “Despite clear assurances that he would be released, Mr. Fahmy remains in detention in Egypt,” the lawyer, Amal Clooney, wrote.

Ms. Clooney, who last year married the actor George Clooney, appeared to be capitalizing on her new celebrity to draw attention to the case. She requested a meeting with Mr. Sisi or a representative to discuss it.

An appellate court last month ordered a retrial of the Al Jazeera journalists, and Egyptian state media reported on Sunday that that trial was scheduled to begin on Thursday.

Mr. Fahmy, Mr. Mohamed and Mr. Greste were among at least 12 journalists imprisoned in Egypt at the end of last year, according to a tally by the Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit group. Other counts put the total at 60 or more.