Sunday, June 19, 2016

Trial of Egypt's Press Syndicate Head Adjourned as Defense Requests Witness List
El-Sayed Gamal El-Din
Saturday 18 Jun 2016

Syndicate chairman Yehia Kalash and two board members were referred to court for harbouring journalists Mahmoud El-Sakka and Amr Badr in the syndicate's Downtown Cairo headquarters

A Cairo misdemeanour court adjourned Saturday the second session of the trial of Egypt's Press Syndicate chairman, Yehia Kalash, and two other board members on charges of harbouring fugitives inside the syndicate's headquarters.

Kalash, along with union secretary-general Gamal Abdel-Reheem and undersecretary Khaled El-Balshy, was referred to courtin June for harbouring journalists Mahmoud El-Sakka and Amr Badr who were staging a sit-in to protest warrants issued for their arrest.

The trial was adjourned to 25 June after the defence requested the testimonies of journalists El-Sakka and Badr, who were arrested inside the syndicate and were among many ordered arrested ahead of the 25 April protests against the Egyptian-Saudi Red Sea island maritime border agreement.

Kalash, Abdel-Reheem and El-Balshy are also facing charges of spreading false news about the police raid on the syndicate's headquarters 1 Maythat resulted in thearrest of the two journalists.

A trial is yet to be set for this second charge.

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/223278.aspx


Egyptian human rights campaigner Mina Thabet released pending investigations

Ahram Online
Saturday 18 Jun 2016

Thabet had been detained since late May following an arrest spate against activists who protested the Egypt Saudi Arabia border agreement

An Egyptian court released the human rights campaigner Mena Thabet pending investigationson charges of seeking to overturn the regime and joining a terrorist group.

Thabet, the programme director for minorities and marginalised groups at the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms,remained in custody for nearly a month after he was arrested at the end of May.

Thabet's detention came in the wake of an arrest spate against activists who protested against the Egyptian-Saudi maritime border deal thatput the two Red Sea islands of Tiran and Sanafir within Saudi regional waters.

The prosecution accused him ofinciting unlicensed protests, instigating attacks on police stations, and joining a terrorist group that prevents state institutions from doing its work.

Last week, aCairo misdemeanor court acquitted 51 of charges of illegally protesting on 25 April in downtown Cairo against the Egypt-Saudi dealwhile another Cairomisdemeanor court acquittedearlier this month 33 of the same charges.

In late may, Cairo's court ofappeals overturned five-year jail sentences against a group of 47 people who were also arrested duringthedemonstrations against the deal. However, defendants had to pay a hefty fine of EGP 100,000 (approximately $11,500).

http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/223308.aspx

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