WATCH ABOVE: Canadian journalist Mohammed Fahmy talks about postponement of his retrial.
Al Jazeera journalist Mohamed Fahmy will be waiting at least another month for his retrial in Egypt to continue, but he may finally be able to get his hands on a new Canadian passport following the 40-year-old’s latest court appearance in Cairo.
“We keep hearing from diplomats, in the foreign ministry in Canada and the foreign ministry here, that they want to expedite the case, that this is moving along very well… and they feel it’s going to end soon,” Fahmy told Global News in a phone interview Wednesday night.
READ MORE: Vision of returning to Canada a free man keeps Mohamed Fahmy going
The judge overseeing Wednesday’s session swore in a new technical committee to review seven CDs of video footage produced by Fahmy and his Al Jazeera colleagues Australian Peter Greste and Egyptian Baher Mohamed.
The committee will have to determine if the videos had been edited or manipulated in any way.
For example, if there is a protest, and there is the sound of gunfire, check to see if this sound was added in,” the Toronto Star reported judge Hassan Shehata telling the three experts.
Those experts will not, however, have to determine if the videos endangered Egypt’s national security – a significant change from what a previous technical committee was asked to do at Fahmy’s original trial.
Fahmy said being forced to wait another four weeks to proceed with the retrial, which the judge adjourned until April 22, is “excruciating.”
There have already been two previous adjournments since he and Mohamed were ordered to stand trial again on terrorism-related charges. “It’s too much,” said Egyptian-born Fahmy, who was released on bail on Feb. 12 after spending 411 days in detention. He spent some of that time in hospital coping with an injury to his shoulder, sustained prior to his arrest, that grew worse due to lack of treatment while languishing in prison. He now has limited use of his right arm.
The three journalists for Qatar-based Al Jazeera’s English-language channel were arrested in Cairo on Dec. 29, 2013 — a mere three months after Fahmy took the job of Cairo Bureau Chief — and accused of airing falsified footage intended to damage national security and being part of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, which is now considered a terrorist group in Egypt.
They were found guilty in June. Fahmy and Greste were sentenced to seven years in prison, Mohamed to 10 years.
Fahmy renounced his dual Egyptian citizenship in hopes he might be deported under a presidential decree that allows President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to deport foreign citizens charged with or convicted of a crime.
That decree led to Greste being deported on Feb. 1. But not Fahmy. He and Mohamed were ordered to stand trial again just seven days later.
Fahmy doesn’t expect an outcome from the retrial until sometime in June — a full year since he and his colleagues were convicted in a trial that was internationally criticized.
READ MORE: Why does Mohamed Fahmy have to give up citizenship for freedom?
Despite the delays, Fahmy sees some positive things happening in the new trial that are keeping his hopes up.
“I feel this judge is trying to correct all the mistakes and shortcomings from the previous trial,” he said.
And the possibility he may be able to get a new Canadian passport means he may get to have somewhat of a normal life while he waits for to retrial to proceed.
He told the judge, on Wednesday, he hasn’t seen the document since the night “plain-clothed men” arrested him, Greste and Mohamed at the Cairo Mariott Hotel. “I don’t know which security apparatus has it,” Fahmy said.
READ MORE: Peter Greste struggled to leave Al-Jazeera colleagues behind in Egyptian prison
After hearing his story, the judge told Fahmy to go to the prosecutor’s office to seek the return of his passport and, if it’s not in their possession, file a report with the police that it has been lost.
Fahmy and his lawyers plan to do that Thursday morning, then submit an application for a new passport to the Canadian embassy in Cairo.
The Canadian Embassy submitted a letter to the judge on Wednesday, highlighting that Fahmy had applied to be deported from Egypt, just like his Australian colleague. Fahmy’s hoping he’ll either be deported at some point during the retrial. But if he’s convicted again, he hopes this step will keep him from spending any more time in prison.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has faced much criticism for not taking more direct action in Fahmy’s case and brokering a deal with President el-Sisi to secure his release.
READ MORE: Family of jailed journalist Mohamed Fahmy launches ‘HarperCallEgypt’ campaign
The Canadian government says it has been “actively engaged” in the case and has spoken to the Egyptian officials about the situation on several occasions.
Fahmy is passing his time in Cairo by developing a new foundation, in his name, to fight for press freedom and assist other jailed journalists.
READ MORE: Mohamed Fahmy starts foundation to help imprisoned journalists
He’s also working on a book about his ordeal, but admits it’s hard to stay focused when waiting to learn his fate.
He has some “major issues” with how Al Jazeera handled his arrest, the trial and his conviction – which he has addressed since being released – including the lawyers the network hired to represent him and his colleagues.
That didn’t sit well with the network. Al Jazeera also launched a $150-million lawsuit against the Egyptian government right before the verdict in the first trial, which Fahmy said affected his situation “negatively.”
Fahmy said that was a matter of the Qatari government, which owns Al Jazeera and was a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood and ousted President Mohammed Morsi, settling scores with Egypt.
That lawyer the network hired to represent Fahmy and the others, wound up turning against Al Jazeera, “handing his defendants to the judge,” Fahmy said.
Through the retrial, Fahmy is now represented by high-profile human rights lawyer Amal Clooney.
“Me and the network are not on the best of terms at the moment. However, in the past couple of days they seem like they changed their stance.” He’s waiting to see if his employer will cover his mounting legal costs.
“If you’re in prison and you have a permanent disability… and you’re still going through this issue, the last thing you want to do is go broke.”
With files from The Canadian Press
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