Karim El-Assiuti told Reuters his colleagues at the Al Jazeera Mubasher Misr channel were arrested while working in the studio. The station was prevented from broadcasting from a pro-Mursi rally and its crew there was also detained, he said.
The Egyptian arm of the Qatari-owned media company began broadcasting after the 2011 uprising that topped President Hosni Mubarak and has been accused by critics of being sympathetic to Mursi’s Muslim Brotherhood.
The incident is a back-handed acknowledgement the Al Jazeera has been in the tank for the Muslim Brotherhood and is seen by the new military regime as a propaganda arm for the group. However, concerns over the direction of the new Egyptian regime may be amplified with stories of press agencies being targeted by the military.
Al Jazeera expressed outrage over the incident and also reported on other “pro-Morsi” news outlets under siege:
Al Jazeera has demanded the release of a top staff member who was detained when Egyptian security officials raided the Mubasher Misr channel, shortly after Mohamed Morsi was ousted as president.
Three other television channels, all deemed to be pro-Morsi by Egyptian authorities, were also shut down on Wednesday in a move condemned by rights groups and journalists.
Mubasher Misr’s managing director Ayman Gaballah remains in custody. Four other staff members have been released.
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