Peter Greste became emotional when recording an Australian comedy show on Wednesday as he learned that his Al Jazeera colleague, Mohamed Fahmy, had been pardoned in Egypt.
Egyptian authorities released the Canadian journalist and his Egyptian colleague Baher Mohammed on Wednesday after a presidential pardon.
The 41-year-old Fahmy’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.
READ MORE: Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy pardoned in Egypt
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.
“If he’s got a pardon it means, and God I hope it means, that Baher is out too because its hard to imagine,” Greste said as he read the news. “I’m sorry I’m feeling really emotional…I mean, we’ve been fighting for the past eight months for this and, I mean, I, Christ, I’m sorry.”
Greste was sentenced in absentia after he was deported in February.
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.
READ MORE: Mohamed Fahmy’s ordeal over but his journey continues
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