SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Uproar as Egypt Hands 'Devastating' Prison Terms to Al Jazeera Journalists
Ruling comes the day after Kerry pledged renewal of US support for Egyptian government
Jun 23, 2014
An Egyptian judge on Monday sentenced three Al Jazeera journalists to prison terms of seven to 10 years for allegedly supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and reporting "false news," provoking an uproar among human rights and free press advocates and shock in the courtroom.
"This ruling means that journalism is a crime in Egypt," wrote journalist Sharif Kouddous, tweeting from the courtroom.
Peter Greste and Mohamed Fahmy were each sentenced to seven years in jail and Baher Mohamed was handed a ten year sentence. All of these journalists work for Al Jazeera English.
Fahmy was reportedly beaten in prison, resulting in a severe shoulder injury.
Family members and supporters of the journalists reacted with shock and outrage to the sentences, which are widely viewed as part of the government crackdown on a free press.
Wafaa Bassiouny, Fahmy's mother, shouted and cried as she stormed out of the courtroom, according to independent Egyptian publication Mada Masr.
"There is no hope in the judicial system. This is a screwed up system and this whole government is incompetent," said Fahmy's brother, as quoted by Mada Masr. "Tell them, they've ruined a family."
Several Egyptian students were also handed seven year prison terms, on the grounds that they had collaborated with the journalists.
Several other Al Jazeera journalists were tried in absentia and handed ten year sentences.
"This is a devastating verdict for the men and their families, and a dark day for media freedom in Egypt, when journalists are being locked up and branded criminals or 'terrorists' simply for doing their job," said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International in a statement released Monday.
All of those sentenced, who have already been jailed for six months, deny any wrongdoing, and lawyers have vowed an appeal.
The sentences came just one day after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited Cairo and vowed support for the regime of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, including renewal of military aid.
The ruling follows Egypt's release last week of hunger striking Al Jazeera journalist Abdullah Elshamy after he was held for 10 months in prison without trial or charge.
Reports and commentary are being posted to Twitter:
_____________________
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is the editor of Workday Magazine and a contributing editor for In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
An Egyptian judge on Monday sentenced three Al Jazeera journalists to prison terms of seven to 10 years for allegedly supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and reporting "false news," provoking an uproar among human rights and free press advocates and shock in the courtroom.
"This ruling means that journalism is a crime in Egypt," wrote journalist Sharif Kouddous, tweeting from the courtroom.
Peter Greste and Mohamed Fahmy were each sentenced to seven years in jail and Baher Mohamed was handed a ten year sentence. All of these journalists work for Al Jazeera English.
Fahmy was reportedly beaten in prison, resulting in a severe shoulder injury.
Family members and supporters of the journalists reacted with shock and outrage to the sentences, which are widely viewed as part of the government crackdown on a free press.
Wafaa Bassiouny, Fahmy's mother, shouted and cried as she stormed out of the courtroom, according to independent Egyptian publication Mada Masr.
"There is no hope in the judicial system. This is a screwed up system and this whole government is incompetent," said Fahmy's brother, as quoted by Mada Masr. "Tell them, they've ruined a family."
Several Egyptian students were also handed seven year prison terms, on the grounds that they had collaborated with the journalists.
Several other Al Jazeera journalists were tried in absentia and handed ten year sentences.
"This is a devastating verdict for the men and their families, and a dark day for media freedom in Egypt, when journalists are being locked up and branded criminals or 'terrorists' simply for doing their job," said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International in a statement released Monday.
All of those sentenced, who have already been jailed for six months, deny any wrongdoing, and lawyers have vowed an appeal.
The sentences came just one day after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited Cairo and vowed support for the regime of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, including renewal of military aid.
The ruling follows Egypt's release last week of hunger striking Al Jazeera journalist Abdullah Elshamy after he was held for 10 months in prison without trial or charge.
Reports and commentary are being posted to Twitter:
_____________________
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is the editor of Workday Magazine and a contributing editor for In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
An Egyptian judge on Monday sentenced three Al Jazeera journalists to prison terms of seven to 10 years for allegedly supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and reporting "false news," provoking an uproar among human rights and free press advocates and shock in the courtroom.
"This ruling means that journalism is a crime in Egypt," wrote journalist Sharif Kouddous, tweeting from the courtroom.
Peter Greste and Mohamed Fahmy were each sentenced to seven years in jail and Baher Mohamed was handed a ten year sentence. All of these journalists work for Al Jazeera English.
Fahmy was reportedly beaten in prison, resulting in a severe shoulder injury.
Family members and supporters of the journalists reacted with shock and outrage to the sentences, which are widely viewed as part of the government crackdown on a free press.
Wafaa Bassiouny, Fahmy's mother, shouted and cried as she stormed out of the courtroom, according to independent Egyptian publication Mada Masr.
"There is no hope in the judicial system. This is a screwed up system and this whole government is incompetent," said Fahmy's brother, as quoted by Mada Masr. "Tell them, they've ruined a family."
Several Egyptian students were also handed seven year prison terms, on the grounds that they had collaborated with the journalists.
Several other Al Jazeera journalists were tried in absentia and handed ten year sentences.
"This is a devastating verdict for the men and their families, and a dark day for media freedom in Egypt, when journalists are being locked up and branded criminals or 'terrorists' simply for doing their job," said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International in a statement released Monday.
All of those sentenced, who have already been jailed for six months, deny any wrongdoing, and lawyers have vowed an appeal.
The sentences came just one day after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited Cairo and vowed support for the regime of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, including renewal of military aid.
The ruling follows Egypt's release last week of hunger striking Al Jazeera journalist Abdullah Elshamy after he was held for 10 months in prison without trial or charge.
Reports and commentary are being posted to Twitter:
_____________________
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.