CAIRO: Blogger Ahmed Mostafa was released Sunday after an Egyptian Military Court decided to dismiss the case filed against him for accusing the military of corruption.
The Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) welcomed the release, referring to the court’s decision as the “right one.
Mostafa’s lawyers, who are members in the unit for legal support of freedom of expression at ANHRI, were shocked to find that the blogger’s case was not included in the list of cases to be heard on Sunday when they arrived at the military court in Nasr City, East Cairo.
According to Gamal Eid, executive director at ANHRI, Mostafa’s release procedures are underway.
“We expect his release in the next few hours, Eid told Daily News Egypt on Sunday afternoon.
“The decision to close the case is the right decision since this case should not have initially reached the court. We hope that the Egyptian government proceeds to release other bloggers including Mossad Abu Fagr and Hany Nazir who are held under emergency law, so that the records are set straight, read a statement released by ANHRI.
Mostafa, an engineering student at Kafr El-Sheikh University, was facing three charges, including spreading false information about a military institution through his blog, offending the Egyptian Armed Forces and working to shake people’s confidence in the Armed Forces.
Mostafa was called in for questioning on Feb. 25, 2010, more than a year after his controversial blog post dated Feb. 15, 2009.
He was detained until the first hearing on March 1.
