Egypt Frees Jailed Al-Jazeera Journalist Peter Greste
Al Jazeera journalist Peter Greste is being released and deported from Egypt.
The Associated Press is reporting that Greste's release follows a presidential "approval" and was coordinated with the Australian Embassy in Cairo. The AP says Greste is on his way to the Cairo airport to leave the country.
Greste and two other men, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, were arrested in December 2013 and imprisoned in June of last year. The three men were were convicted on terrorism charges and accused of aiding or being members of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood.
There is no word on whether the Fahmy and Mohamed will be released.
NPR's Leila Fadel reports that Fahmy has also applied for deportation under a new law that allows foreigners accused or convicted of a crime in Egypt to be deported to their home countries and be tried there, with the approval of the president. But Baher Mohamed, an Egyptian, cannot be released under that law and will likely go on trial again.
Al Jazeera released a statement praising the release but saying that it as "not enough." The network says all three must be exonerated.
"We will not rest until Baher and Mohamed also regain their freedom. The Egyptian authorities have it in their power to finish this properly today, and that is exactly what they must do," Mostefa Souag, acting director general of the Al Jazeera Media Network, said in a statement.
This is a breaking news story and we will have more updates as information comes in.