Retrial of Al Jazeera Journalists in Egypt postponed to June 1st

The retrial of two Al Jazeera English journalists accused of supporting an outlawed group and spreading false news in Egypt has been postponed to June 1.

Authorities say Baher Mohamed and Mohamed Fahmy, who are due to attend the fifth hearing of their retrial next month, have ties to the former President Mohamed Morsi’s blacklisted Muslim Brotherhood.

Another Al Jazeera journalist, Peter Greste, also faced the same charges but was deported in December.

The journalists and Al Jazeera reject the charges.

The trio were arrested in December 2013 after a raid on the hotel room where they were staying and held for 400 days, during which they were convicted of the same charges.

A judge later cancelled those verdicts and ordered a retrial. Greste was deported to his native Australia, and Fahmy and Mohamed were released on bail.

The trial attracted international condemnation, with world leader’s – including US President Barack Obama – pressuring the Egyptian government to release the journalists.

A social media campaign attracted tens of thousands of posts in support of the men with the hashtag ‘FreeAJStaff’ trending internationally.

Egypt launched a crackdown on journalists it accused of sympathising with the Muslim Brotherhood and currently holds 12 journalists in its prisons, according the the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Source: Al Jazeera