Cairo Court acquits Aya Hijazi on Sunday
A Cairo court acquitted Egyptian-American activist Aya Hijazi and sevenothers associated with her Belady NGO of charges of human trafficking and child abuse on Sunday, Reuters reports. Prosecutors can appeal the verdict, which comes after Hijazi had been held for nearly three years for her work with street children. The decision also comes two weeks after President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met with US President Donald Trump, where one of the items of the conversation included Hijazi. Hijazi’s detention was an issue of concern and was being watched closely by the Trump administration, an administration official had said at the time. Following the verdict, Hijazi and her husband and co-founder Mohamed Hassanein vowed to continue advocate for street children and declared they were undeterred by the three-year stint in prison. The story leads coverage of Egypt in the international press this morning. See pieces from the New York Times, Washington Post, Associated Press, the BBC and the Guardian.