Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian rights lawyer says a former diplomat who called for a referendum on Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's government has been released from jail.
Khaled Ali says his client, Masoum Marzouk, was released earlier this week along with four activists.
Marzouk was arrested in August 2018, shortly after calling for a referendum and a "popular conference" in Tahrir Square — epicenter of the 2011 uprising — if the government rejected his proposal.
El-Sissi's government has rolled back many of the freedoms won in 2011, banning unauthorized protests and jailing thousands of people since 2013. He was re-elected in March 2018 after all serious challengers were either arrested or pressured into leaving the race.
Marzouk was released Thursday, pending an investigation into terror-related charges.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.