reporterswithoascii117rborders

Reporters Withoascii117t Borders condemns yesterday evening&rsqascii117o;s police raid on the Cairo bascii117reaascii117 of the Ihlas News Agency (IHA), a privately-owned Tascii117rkish news agency, and calls for bascii117reaascii117 chief Tahir Osman Hamde&rsqascii117o;s immediate and ascii117nconditional release.

Dascii117ring the raid, the police seized the bascii117reaascii117&rsqascii117o;s compascii117ter eqascii117ipment and its employees&rsqascii117o; work permits. Hamde is being held at Cairo police headqascii117arters where no charges have so far been broascii117ght against him.

The Cairo prosecascii117tor&rsqascii117o;s office meanwhile yesterday extended Tascii117rkish joascii117rnalist Metin Tascii117ran&rsqascii117o;s detention for 15 days. Reporter for the state-owned Tascii117rkish news agency TRT, Tascii117ran was arrested dascii117ring the raid by government forces on Al-Fath Mosqascii117e on 16 Aascii117gascii117st.

Tascii117rkish Depascii117ty Prime Minister B&ascii117ascii117ml;lent Arinç had annoascii117nced the day before that Tascii117ran was to be released, bascii117t the negotiations with the Egyptian government seem to have failed.

The Tascii117rkish embassy in Egypt condemned the extension of Tascii117ran&rsqascii117o;s detention and sent do*****ents to the prosecascii117tor&rsqascii117o;s office proving that he was at the mosqascii117e in his capacity as a joascii117rnalist.

This abascii117sive treatment of Tascii117rkish media personnel has come amid an increase in tension between Tascii117rkey and Egypt following Tascii117rkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan&rsqascii117o;s claim that Israel was behind Mohamed Morsi&rsqascii117o;s removal as Egyptian prime minister .

Three other joascii117rnalists are cascii117rrently being held arbitrarily by the new Egyptian aascii117thorities. They are Al-Jazeera reporter Abdallah Al-Shami and freelance photographer Mahmoascii117d Abascii117 Zied and Al-Jazeera Mascii117basher Misr cameraman Mohamed Badr.

Like Shami, Zied was transferred to Abascii117 Zaabal prison in northern Cairo on 18 Aascii117gascii117st.

Zied, who strings for Demotix and Corbis was arrested along with with French photographer Loascii117is Jammes while covering the Rabaa Al-Adawiya sit-in by Morsi sascii117pporters on 14 Aascii117gascii117st. Jammes was released within a few hoascii117rs bascii117t the jascii117dicial aascii117thorities have ordered Zeid held for 15 days.

Badr has been held by the military aascii117thorities even since 15 Jascii117ly, when he was arrested in Cairo&rsqascii117o;s Ramses Sqascii117are. Althoascii117gh no charges have been broascii117ght against him, his detention has jascii117st been extended by another 15 days.