Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy pardoned in Egypt

A Canadian journalist who spent more than a year in an Egyptian prison on widely denounced terror charges was pardoned by the country’s president on Wednesday.

It was an abrupt turn of events for Mohamed Fahmy, whose case has drawn attention around the world.

Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi pardoned the 41-year-old along with prominent human rights activists, Egypt’s state-run news agency said.

Fahmy’s family expressed their jubilation at the development, which appeared to mark the end of a long legal battle for the journalist.

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“I don’t know what to say. It is done. Thank God, thank God,” said Fahmy’s brother Adel.

The news agency MENA said el-Sissi has ordered those pardoned be released later in the day.

Fahmy’s lawyer confirmed the pardon, saying his client was a “professional and innocent journalist.”

“I was sure the president was going to issue such a decision,” Khaled Abu Bakr said. “This decision will have positive impact on the media and international level.”

An emailed statement from the Egyptian president’s office said the pardons were given to people “who have received final prison verdicts in cases related to breaking a protest law or infringing on the police forces’ actions, in addition to a number of health-related and humanitarian cases.”

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The pardon also came a day before el-Sissi is to travel to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly.

Fahmy was given a three-year sentence last month after his second trial – an outcome that shocked international observers.

The 41-year-old’s troubles began in December 2013 when he was working as the Cairo bureau chief for Qatar-based satellite news broadcaster Al Jazeera English.

He and two colleagues were abruptly arrested and charged with a slew of offences, including supporting a banned organization and with fabricating footage to undermine the country’s national security.

The trio maintained their innocence throughout, saying they were just doing their jobs, but after a trial that was internationally decried as a sham, they were found guilty and sentenced to prison terms.

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An appeal of their convictions resulted in a second trial, although one of them, Australian Peter Greste, was abruptly deported under a law which allows for the deportation of foreign nationals convicted of crimes.

Fahmy gave up his Egyptian citizenship while behind bars in the hopes that he could follow the same path, but that didn’t happen.

He and his other colleague, Egyptian Baher Mohamed, were, however, granted bail during their retrial, which culminated in last month’s surprising verdict.

Following the verdict, Ottawa had formally asked Egypt’s president to pardon Fahmy or allow his deportation to Canada.

The federal government said it welcomed Wednesday’s developments.

“Canada is pleased that Egyptian President el-Sisi has granted Mr. Fahmy a pardon,” said a spokeswoman with the department of foreign affairs. “We look forward to Mr. Fahmy reuniting with his family and loved ones, and his return to Canada.”

The court that convicted Fahmy said he and his colleagues were, by default, members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group – considered a terrorist organization by Egypt – because their employer, Al Jazeera, “dedicated its broadcasting to the service and support of the Muslim Brotherhood faction.”

Al Jazeera is owned by Qatar, which has had a tense relationship with Egypt ever since the Egyptian military ousted the country’s former president Mohamed Morsi amid massive protests. Qatar is a strong backer of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood.

Fahmy moved to Canada with his family in 1991, living in Montreal and Vancouver for years before eventually moving abroad for work, which included covering stories for the New York Times and CNN.

Once he leaves Egypt, Fahmy has said he plans to take up a position as an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia’s school of journalism in Vancouver. He is also writing a book about his experiences.

– with files from the Associated Press