(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a 20 February 2004 CPJ press release: EGYPT: Ambassador says expelled journalist can resume work New York, February 20, 2004-Egyptian Ambassador to the United States Nabil Fahmy told the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) yesterday that a U.S. journalist who was expelled from Egypt in late January without explanation can […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – The following is a 20 February 2004 CPJ press release:
EGYPT: Ambassador says expelled journalist can resume work
New York, February 20, 2004-Egyptian Ambassador to the United States Nabil Fahmy told the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) yesterday that a U.S. journalist who was expelled from Egypt in late January without explanation can return to the country and resume his work.
On January 29, at Cairo International Airport, Egyptian security authorities ordered Charles Levinson, a Cairo-based reporter who contributes to several newspapers, including The San Francisco Chronicle, The Boston Globe, the Beirut-based Daily Star, and the English-language Egyptian weekly Cairo Times, to leave the country. The order came shortly after Levinson returned to Cairo from the United States, where he had been on vacation. No reason for the action was given.
In a phone conversation with CPJ Senior Program Coordinator Joel Campagna late yesterday, Ambassador Fahmy said that Levinson’s expulsion was a “misunderstanding,” and that the matter had been “resolved.” The ambassador added that the journalist can return to Egypt and resume work immediately.
“We welcome Ambassador Fahmy’s clarification and assurance that our colleague can return to Egypt to resume his work,” said Campagna. “We look forward to him continuing his reporting.”
