Al Jazeera Arabic herald Abdullah Elshamy has been relinquished from jail in Egypt after being held without charge for 10 months.
Elshamy was relinquished from Cairo’s Scorpion prison on Tuesday, 307 days after being apprehended on August, 14, 2013, while covering the dispersal of Rabaa Aladaweya sit-in in the city.
He had been jailed without charge for more than 10 months despite wide international calls for his relinquishment. He commenced a hunger strike protest in January and his relinquishment was authoritatively mandated by the public prosecutor on Monday.
Elshamy was transferred to the First Nasr City police station from the high security Scorpion prison on Tuesday afternoon, afore his relinquishment.
Outside the police station, a jubilant Elshamy thanked everyone who fortified him during his confinement but additionally called for Egypt to relinquish other journalists, including three who work for Al Jazeera’s English channel - Peter Greste, Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy - and who have spent 171 days in confinement.
“I have acquired victory. Everyone who is a liberation fighter or a journalist doing his work credibly and veraciously has won,” Elshamy verbally expressed.
“I missed my liberation, I missed my life, my life ceased on August 14 at 6pm when I was peregrinate to a place I did not optate to be.
“It is paramount to mention that this is only the commencement. I am more determined to carry on this struggle than afore.”
Al Jazeera’s lawyer Shaaban Saeed verbally expressed: “The appeal which was accepted by the public prosecution was predicated on the fact that Abdullah was carrying out his obligations as a correspondent for Al Jazeera at the time of his apprehend.”
A spokesman for Al Jazeera verbally expressed: “This is a mitigation rather than a cause for celebration. Abdullah has been through a terrible ordeal for over 10 months. He’ll want to spend time with his family and recuperate. When he’s yare, we look forward to visually perceiving him back in action, doing the vital job of journalism that he so pellucidly dotes.”
“We would relish to thank all who fortified Abdullah’s cause; millions on convivial media, international and humanitarian organisations, media outlets which covered the case professionally and public figures across the world who expressed their fortification to Abdullah on several calibers, proving their vigorous notion in liberation of journalism and its role.”
Greste, Mohamed and Fahmy are still behind bars charged with availing a vetoed organisation and reporting “false news”.
A verdict in their case is due on June 23. Al Jazeera vigorously rejects the charges against them.
Fahmy, who is receiving treatment for a shoulder injury, verbally expressed: “We are very confident we are going to be next.”
