Three staff members of an Egyptian human rights group were released from an Egyptian prison Thursday.
The men, who worked for the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, were arrested a month ago on charges of joining a terrorist organization and spreading false information on social media.
Their arrests came just days after Western diplomats met with the trio to discuss how to improve human rights in Egypt.
“Meeting with foreign diplomats is not a crime.” Antony Blinken, U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s pick for secretary of state, posted on Twitter.
The arrests of Gasser Abdel-Razek, Karim Ennarah and Mohamed Basheer received international attention, with actors Scarlet Johansson and Emma Thompson joining the chorus of worldwide calls for the men’s release.
On Twitter, EIPR confirmed their release.
Gasser, Karim and Basheer were let go directly from Tora prison. Unusual. They are now either home or on the way home.
— المبادرة المصرية للحقوق الشخصية (@EIPR) December 3, 2020
EIPR is one of the few human rights groups remaining in Egypt, where President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi has clamped down hard on opposition parties, pro-democracy activists and journalists.
