Freed Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy lands in Vancouver

Three days after returning to the country, freed Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy arrived in Vancouver with his wife late Thursday night.

Fahmy says while things could have been handled “in a better way” by our nation’s Conservative government, he’s nonetheless happy to be back on Canadian soil ahead of next week’s federal election.

“I really feel strong about bringing this message to Ottawa regardless of who wins the elections because tomorrow morning another fellow Canadian could be in a situation like mine,” he says.

“And I feel that there are ways to better protect Canadians.”

READ MORE: Fahmy hopes ordeal will lead to ‘constructive debate’ on foreign policy

It has been nearly two years since his arrest in Egypt on widely denounced terrorism charges. Fahmy, who was given a three-year sentence in August after his second trial, walked out of prison a free man last month after receiving a pardon from Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.

READ MORE: ‘Betrayed and abandoned’: Mohamed Fahmy slams Harper on involvement during his trial

The 41-year-old Fahmy was working as the Cairo bureau chief for the Qatar-based satellite news broadcaster Al Jazeera English when he and two colleagues were arrested and charged with a slew of offences. Among the offences was airing what a court described as biased coverage in favour of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood.

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.

Fahmy had moved to Canada with his family in 1991, living in Montreal and Vancouver for years before eventually moving abroad for work and landing at Al Jazeera English.

Now in Vancouver, Fahmy will be lecturing at the University of British Columbia School of Journalism and will also be writing a book about his experiences.

~ with files from Canadian Press