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| Egyptian Photojournalist Is Released After 5 Years in Prison | Egyptian Photojournalist Is Released After 5 Years in Prison |
| (about 16 hours later) | |
| CAIRO — Egypt on Monday freed a prominent photojournalist who had spent five and a half years in prison for taking pictures during a crackdown in 2013 that culminated in the killing of more than 800 protesters. | CAIRO — Egypt on Monday freed a prominent photojournalist who had spent five and a half years in prison for taking pictures during a crackdown in 2013 that culminated in the killing of more than 800 protesters. |
| The photojournalist, Mahmoud Abou Zeid, known as Shawkan, was returned to his family home in Cairo, where he vowed to continue working despite a five-year probation that requires him to spend every night at a police station. | The photojournalist, Mahmoud Abou Zeid, known as Shawkan, was returned to his family home in Cairo, where he vowed to continue working despite a five-year probation that requires him to spend every night at a police station. |
| “I can’t describe how I feel,” he told Reuters soon after his release at dawn. “I am free.” | “I can’t describe how I feel,” he told Reuters soon after his release at dawn. “I am free.” |
| Mr. Abou Zeid was probably the best-known of the dozens of Egyptian journalists jailed under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who has slowly suffocated free speech since he came to power in 2013. Mr. el-Sisi has muzzled critical news outlets and, of late, expelled or refused entry to foreign reporters. | Mr. Abou Zeid was probably the best-known of the dozens of Egyptian journalists jailed under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who has slowly suffocated free speech since he came to power in 2013. Mr. el-Sisi has muzzled critical news outlets and, of late, expelled or refused entry to foreign reporters. |
| While in prison, Mr. Abou Zeid has received numerous international awards; last year, he won the Unesco Press Freedom Prize. That award drew fury from the Egyptian authorities, who said Mr. Abou Zeid was suspected of being a terrorist; the Foreign Ministry blamed Qatar for promoting his cause — a common Egyptian response to outside criticism. | While in prison, Mr. Abou Zeid has received numerous international awards; last year, he won the Unesco Press Freedom Prize. That award drew fury from the Egyptian authorities, who said Mr. Abou Zeid was suspected of being a terrorist; the Foreign Ministry blamed Qatar for promoting his cause — a common Egyptian response to outside criticism. |
| Mr. el-Sisi’s disregard for international criticism appears to have grown in the absence of any censure from President Trump, who has disparaged the news media as “enemies of the people” and hailed the Egyptian leader as a “fantastic guy.” | Mr. el-Sisi’s disregard for international criticism appears to have grown in the absence of any censure from President Trump, who has disparaged the news media as “enemies of the people” and hailed the Egyptian leader as a “fantastic guy.” |
| Mr. Abou Zeid was arrested during the tumult that followed the July 2013 military takeover. In August, protests led by Muslim Brotherhood supporters filled a square in central Cairo, culminating in a bloody clear-out by the security forces that left hundreds dead. | Mr. Abou Zeid was arrested during the tumult that followed the July 2013 military takeover. In August, protests led by Muslim Brotherhood supporters filled a square in central Cairo, culminating in a bloody clear-out by the security forces that left hundreds dead. |
| Mr. Abou Zeid, who was on assignment for a British photo agency, was arrested on Aug. 13, alongside journalists from France and the United States. The Westerners were released later that day, but Mr. Abou Zeid was detained at the maximum security Tora Prison, south of Cairo. | Mr. Abou Zeid, who was on assignment for a British photo agency, was arrested on Aug. 13, alongside journalists from France and the United States. The Westerners were released later that day, but Mr. Abou Zeid was detained at the maximum security Tora Prison, south of Cairo. |
| He was eventually put on trial with 739 other defendants, in one of the largest mass hearings since the Arab Spring in 2011, facing 24 charges including weapons possession, illegal assembly and murder. | |
| “My passion is photography, but I am paying the price for my passion with my life,” he wrote in a letter to observe his 600th day in detention in March 2015. “Tora Prison is like a cemetery. It is a place where dreams come to die.” | |
| Mr. Abou Zeid kept a brave face during his trial, and photographs of him holding an invisible camera to his face from behind a cage acquired an iconic status. He was convicted in September and sentenced to five years in prison, which he had already served, and handed a fine. | Mr. Abou Zeid kept a brave face during his trial, and photographs of him holding an invisible camera to his face from behind a cage acquired an iconic status. He was convicted in September and sentenced to five years in prison, which he had already served, and handed a fine. |
| A six-month prison term was added to his sentence because he could not afford to pay the fine, supporters said. | A six-month prison term was added to his sentence because he could not afford to pay the fine, supporters said. |
| On Monday, Mr. Abou Zeid was hugged by family members after he returned to his home in Giza. He vowed to continue working. “All journalists are at risk of being arrested or killed while doing their work,” he told Reuters. “I am not the first, and I will not be the last.” | |
| But his ability to work will be circumscribed by the conditions of his detention, which stipulate that he must stay at a police station between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. every night for the next five years. | But his ability to work will be circumscribed by the conditions of his detention, which stipulate that he must stay at a police station between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. every night for the next five years. |
| In a statement, Amnesty International said those measures were “ludicrous” and called for them to be lifted immediately. “As a prisoner of conscience, he should never have been forced to spend a single minute behind bars — let alone five and a half years,” said Najia Bounaim of Amnesty’s North Africa division. | In a statement, Amnesty International said those measures were “ludicrous” and called for them to be lifted immediately. “As a prisoner of conscience, he should never have been forced to spend a single minute behind bars — let alone five and a half years,” said Najia Bounaim of Amnesty’s North Africa division. |
| China, Egypt and Turkey were responsible for about half of the 251 journalists who were imprisoned for their work in 2018, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. | China, Egypt and Turkey were responsible for about half of the 251 journalists who were imprisoned for their work in 2018, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. |
| Mr. el-Sisi, whose supporters in Parliament recently began moves that would allow him to extend his rule until 2034, has sought to control debate in Egypt by using his powerful security agencies to pressure newspapers and broadcasters and by prosecuting or arresting those who step out of line. | Mr. el-Sisi, whose supporters in Parliament recently began moves that would allow him to extend his rule until 2034, has sought to control debate in Egypt by using his powerful security agencies to pressure newspapers and broadcasters and by prosecuting or arresting those who step out of line. |
| Egyptian journalists have borne the brunt of his crackdown, but foreign reporters have recently been subject to harsher measures as well. In February 2018, Egypt expelled without explanation a journalist from The Times of London. Last month, David D. Kirkpatrick, a former Cairo bureau chief for The New York Times, was turned back. | Egyptian journalists have borne the brunt of his crackdown, but foreign reporters have recently been subject to harsher measures as well. In February 2018, Egypt expelled without explanation a journalist from The Times of London. Last month, David D. Kirkpatrick, a former Cairo bureau chief for The New York Times, was turned back. |
| Mr. Kirkpatrick was held overnight at Cairo’s main airport and put on a plane back to London. Officials gave no explanation for their actions. | Mr. Kirkpatrick was held overnight at Cairo’s main airport and put on a plane back to London. Officials gave no explanation for their actions. |