Shaimaa Adel, the Egyptian journalist detained in Sudan, said in a phone call that the Egyptian Embassy in Sudan has not intervened to secure her release, independent Al-Watan newspaper reported Thursday.
Adel told Al-Watan that she will discuss this with the Foreign Ministry when she returns to Egypt.
She explained that she was detained for reporting without a journalism license, adding that she was waiting for the permit on the day she was arrested.
Adel called on her mother to end her sit-in and stop her hunger strike, saying that she had been promised that she would return to Cairo on Monday.
She said that she is being treated well.
Adel, a reporter with Al-Watan, was arrested on 3 July in Khartoum while covering student protests against inflation and austerity measures.
Sudan’s ambassador to Cairo promised that Adel would be released next week, Journalists Syndicate head Mamdouh al-Wali said.
Wali met with Ambassador Kamal Hassan Ali on Thursday to discuss Adel’s case. Wali said that the ambassador had earlier met with Adel’s mother and promised her a phone call with her daughter, state-run Al-Ahram reported.
Adel’s relatives, journalists and activists organized a sit-in Wednesday evening outside the Journalists Syndicate demanding her immediate release. Demonstrations were also held outside the Sudanese Embassy in Cairo.
Adel’s father, Adel Attiya, said that he has not been able to contact his daughter since her arrest, adding that the Foreign Ministry promised her immediate release, which did not happen.
Attiya said the family will continue to pressure the authorities until Adel is released and called on President Mohamed Morsy to intervene on her behalf.
Adel’s mother added that her daughter was only guilty of doing her job.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
