Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abou Zeid was released from prison on Monday after spending more than five years behind bars.
“After his release, he faces ludicrous probation measures which require him to spend 12 hours of each day at a police station from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the next five years. These outrageous measures will severely restrict his liberty and should be lifted immediately,” Amnesty International said in a statement Monday.
Abou Zeid is among 200 defendants who were sentenced to five years in prison as part of a mass trial. He was charged with belonging to an illegal group and possessing firearms.
In a CBS interview that aired in January, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi denied holding political prisoners. He was responding to a question about a Human Rights Watch report that estimated that at least 60,000 of Egypt’s prisoners were held on political grounds.
