State media says journalist arrested in Suez

A journalist belonging to the Qatari satellite network Al Jazeera was arrested in Suez Wednesday, state television reported.

A screen caption on the state news channel Nile News said that security forces arrested a journalist in the industrial city at the southern end of the Suez Canal. A spokesperson for the channel told Reuters that he could not confirm that an employee of Al Jazeera was arrested.

The Interior Ministry has already arrested several journalists working with the Al Jazeera channels, including its English network. Several are set to appear in court Thursday.

At the time, a ministry statement accused the journalists of being “elements of the Muslim Brotherhood.” According to the ministry, the National Security apparatus learned that the journalists used two hotel rooms to hold meetings with Brotherhood members and “broadcast news that harms national security and spread false information for Al Jazeera without the approval of relevant authorities.”

Media coverage has referred to the group as the “Marriott Cell,” named after the upscale hotel where they were arrested.

Three of the journalists, Mohamed Fahmy, Peter Greste, and Baher Mohamed are charged with spreading false news and belonging to a banned group.

Another Al Jazeera journalist, Abdullah al-Shamy, has been held since August. He began a hunger strike on January 23 to protest his detainment, and his family said his condition has worsened since.