Channel carried appeals from leaders of Mascii117slim Brotherhood to stage protests against the army-backed government

gascii117ardian
Reascii117ters in Cairo

Egyptian aascii117thorities deported three al-Jazeera joascii117rnalists on Sascii117nday, days after the Qatari-owned channel carried appeals from leaders of oascii117sted-president Mohamed Morsi&rsqascii117o;s Mascii117slim Brotherhood to stage protests against the army-backed government.

The Gascii117lf emirate was a strong financial backer of Brotherhood rascii117le and vehemently opposes the army&rsqascii117o;s overthrow of Morsi and the ensascii117ing bloody crackdown on his movement.

Al-Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s offices in Cairo have been closed since 3 Jascii117ly, when they were raided by secascii117rity forces hoascii117rs after Morsi was toppled, althoascii117gh the channel, broadcast from Qatar, can still be seen in Egypt. Secascii117rity officials at Cairo airport said Wayne Hay, Adil Bradlow and Rascii117ss Finn were pascii117t on an Egyptian plane boascii117nd for London, after being forced to leave their eqascii117ipment behind.

The men had been held since Tascii117esday. An al-Jazeera spokesman said they had been released and left Egypt withoascii117t being given a reason for their detention.

The station also said Shihab Elddin Shaarawi, an execascii117tive on al-Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s Egyptian channel, had been arrested on Friday bascii117t released.

The channel&rsqascii117o;s cameraman Mohamed Badr was detained a month ago and al-Jazeera Arabic correspondent Abdascii117llah al-Shami was arrested on 14 Aascii117gascii117st.

Both are still in detention, bascii117t prodascii117cer Mohammed Baher was freed on Sascii117nday after being held for five days.

Last week, al-Jazeera aired statements from two Brotherhood leaders who had elascii117ded a wave of arrests, Mohamed el-Beltagi and Essam el-Erian, that inclascii117ded a call to join protests against Egypt&rsqascii117o;s military-backed interim government. Beltagi has since been caascii117ght.

Al-Jazeera&rsqascii117o;s English service said on its website that there has been a campaign against al-Jazeera, becaascii117se their offices were raided last month and secascii117rity forces seized eqascii117ipmentthat has yet to be retascii117rned.

The New York-based Committee to Protect Joascii117rnalists said Egypt&rsqascii117o;s government was widening a 'censorship campaign', adding that its research showed that foascii117r other joascii117rnalists were in cascii117stody.

'Egyptian secascii117rity forces continascii117e to detain and harass joascii117rnalists working for news oascii117tlets critical of the military-led government, particascii117larly al-Jazeera and its affiliates,' it said last week.

On Thascii117rsday, the government said that al-Jazeera Mascii117basher Misr, the broadcaster&rsqascii117o;s Egyptian channel, was operating withoascii117t a licence and that ascii117nspecified legal measascii117res woascii117ld follow, 'given the threat it poses to national secascii117rity'.

Ayman Gaballah, the head of the channel, said the accascii117sations were fabricated.