Imprisoned for over two weeks in Egypt, Al Jazeera reporters held captive received support from 52 reporters and editors who signed a letter calling for their release.
We, the undersigned correspondents and editors of international news organizations covering Egypt, hereby call for the immediate release of our colleagues Peter Greste, Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, who have been arbitrarily imprisoned since December 29. We are deeply concerned to learn that our colleagues, all three of whom are well respected journalists, may face charges that include belonging to a terrorist organization and spreading false news that could endanger national security.
Among the many signers, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Buzzfeed Editor-in-Chief Ben Smith, and a wide array of international journalists (no one from Al Jazeera signed) demanded the release of Al Jazeera’s—and other journalists held longer—from Egypt.
The journalists — identified by Al Jazeera as correspondent Peter Greste, producers Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed and cameraman Mohamed Fawzy — were arrested during raids at the end of last year.