Jazeera journalists file appeal
Lawyers for the jailed Al Jazeera journalists in Egypt yesterday filed appeals against their convictions, the channel announced in a statement released in Doha.
“The weaknesses in the case have been widely protested and ridiculed, and much of the public criticism is reflected in the grounds for appeal,” the statement said.
The case will next be heard before the Court of Cassation which will examine the grounds for hearing a full appeal. A date for the hearing has not yet been set.
Yesterday’s submission to the court rests on the breaches of process in the case. These include: Flaws in the arrest procedure; the fact that evidence presented in court did not marry with the charges; prosecution expert technical witnesses submitted statements which were somehow verbatim; the journalists were accused of editing footage, but without originals, no one could have known whether they were in fact edited; and the judge’s verdict made mention of lack of accreditation, but this is not a criminal offence.
Al Anstey, managing director of Al Jazeera English said: “The appeal will lay bare the flaws in the case against Peter, Baher and Mohamed. These are three outstanding journalists who were just doing their jobs, and journalism is not a crime. We look forward to them being exonerated in due course. We will not stop in this quest till they are reunited with their families, and back doing the jobs they love.”
The campaign to free the three received a further boost this week when leading international and human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin said they should be released, saying that the case was an example of how to set up a “kangaroo court.”
Lankan jailed for murder attempt
A Criminal Court has sentenced a Sri Lankan resident to three years’ imprisonment after he was convicted of attempted murder, local Arabic daily Arrayah has reported.
The man and two of his acquaintances were involved in an assault on a taxi driver following a dispute over the fare.
He would also have to serve an additional jail term of three months for being in an inebriated state on a public road and would be deported on completion of the imprisonment, the report states.
The two others have been sentenced to jail for three months each for helping the first accused attack the taxi driver. One of them would also be deported, it adds.
According to the details of the case, the three accused had consumed alcohol and hailed a taxi to go their residence in Bin Mahmoud. When the driver asked for payment of the fare on arrival at their destination, the three men started arguing with the cabbie over the rate.
While the second accused hit the driver with his hands, the first accused went to his residence and brought a knife, which he then used to stab the cabbie in the chest and stomach, the report states.
As these details were confirmed by a confession given by the first accused, the court delivered the verdict accordingly under relevant articles of the Penal Law.
The third accused was convicted for only being drunk on a public road and would not be deported, it adds.
886 tonnes of food destroyed
The Food Monitoring Department prevented the entry of 886.2 tonnes of food into the country last year and destroyed it due to non-conformity with health and safety norms, local Arabic daily Al Watan has reported, quoting an official source from the Supreme Council of Health. The quantity of food that is denied entry on such grounds has increased over the last few years due to enhanced monitoring, he added.
Altogether, some 973.9 tonnes of rotten food were destroyed last year for reasons such as poor storage or the inability of some items to survive the hot weather, according to the source.
