20 Al Jazeera journalists referred to criminal court

Twenty journalists working for the Al Jazeera channels were referred by State Security Prosecution to criminal court Wednesday on charges related to terrorism and media violations.

The defendants are referred to in the prosecution papers as the “Marriott Cell,” because they rented rooms at the Marriott Hotel in Zamalek, which was allegedly the base of a media center that collected and manipulated media footage to spread false information and rumors in the interests of the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Muslim Brotherhood was designated as a terrorist organization last month.

According to the prosecution papers, the defendants were part of a media network “that specialized in creating video scenes contrary to reality and airing them through Qatari Al Jazeera English and US CNN to distort Egypt’s international reputation.”

Detained Al Jazeera staff include journalists working for Al Jazeera English, Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera Mubasher Misr.

Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed were arrested on December 29 and their detention was renewed for another 15 days on Saturday.

Mohamed Fahmy is described as “the chief of the media network, belonging to the terrorist Muslim Brotherhood.” Fahmy, who previously worked for CNN, is not named in the prosecution papers, but is referred to as “the Egyptian-Canadian.”

Abdallah al-Shami and Mohamed Bader are in their fifth month of detention, and Shami is currently on hunger strike.

The detainees face a number of charges, including belonging to a terrorist group, violating the law, airing false news, possessing broadcasting equipment without the requisite permits, disturbing the public peace and instilling terror. 

In a letter written by Greste and published on January 25, he wrote that he was hesitant to write publicly and had wanted to fight his imprisonment “quietly” but then realized that to do so would validate “an attack not just on me and my two colleagues but on freedom of speech across Egypt.”

He wrote in his letter that he and his colleagues sought to do “exactly as any responsible, professional journalist would" — document and attempt to make sense of unfolding events "with all the accuracy, fairness and balance that our imperfect trade demands.”

In the context of polarization and the designation of the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, he pointed to the challenges for journalists looking to produce balanced, fair and accurate reporting. “How do you accurately and fairly report on Egypt’s ongoing political struggle without talking to everyone involved?”

He described the conditions in which he is being held in stark terms — including cells that are locked for 20 hours a day (and 24 hours on public holidays) — adding, that this is “relatively benign compared to the conditions my colleagues are being held in.”

“Our arrest and continued detention sends a clear and unequivocal message to all journalists covering Egypt, both foreign and local,” he wrote.

On Tuesday, there were reports that Fahmy’s treatment and the conditions in which he is being held worsened despite assurances that he would be given a blanket and medical attention for a shoulder injury he suffered before the arrest.

The Journalists Syndicate also released a statement Tuesday condemning the escalation of arrests and assaults against journalists following the third year anniversary of January 25, 2011. The statement condemned practices that it claimed bring Egypt "back to the eras of deposed presidents Hosni Mubarak and Mohamed Morsi."

Greste's appeal against his ongoing detention was denied in a Cairo court on Wednesday. 

Following the charges, Al Jazeera English held a news conference in London calling on Egyptian authorities to release the journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists has also repeatedly expressed its concern about the safety of journalists in Egypt in recent months.