Two Canadians released from an Egyptian prison this weekend are now waiting to be removed from a no-fly list so they can return home.
The lawyers for John Greyson and Dr. Tarek Loubani have presented their case to the prosecutor, arguing that the two men should be allowed to leave Egypt, CTV’s Middle East Bureau Chief Martin Seemungal reported Monday.
The two men, who were never charged with any crimes, were released from the Tora prison in Cairo on the weekend without conditions. But when they tried to board a flight to Germany on Sunday, they were told their names were on a no-fly list.
There were reports Monday that Greyson and Loubani may not be free to leave Egypt because they were still being investigated.
But Seemungal reported that the men are not being investigated and that the prosecutor may be checking whether there are any other cases against them as a matter of procedure.
Greyson’s sister, Cecilia Greyson, told CTV News Channel earlier Monday that the pair was being held back by red tape and that she wasn’t concerned about the “bureaucratic snafu.”
Cecilia also said that talks of criminal charges against her brother and Loubani had never materialized throughout the entire ordeal.
"I got a message from John saying he only slept a couple of hours because he was so excited, and all he could think about is coming home," Cecilia Greyson told CTV Toronto.
Greyson, a Toronto filmmaker, and Loubani, a London, Ont. doctor, were passing through Egypt on their way to Gaza when they were arrested in Cairo on Aug. 16 and thrown in a crowded jail cell.
They said they were arrested after Loubani stopped to treat the injured at a violent protest while Greyson filmed the scene. The pair was accused of participating in the protest alongside members of the Muslim Brotherhood, but never formally charged.
Greyson and Loubani spent seven weeks in custody.
Friends of the pair say pressure from the Canadian government and the public helped secure their release.
A petition calling for the Ontario men's freedom garnered more than 150,000 signatures.
"I'm convinced that they're free because of this outcry," Greyson's friend Lila Pine said. "Not just in Canada, but all around the world."
Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Sunday he looks forward to the pair’s return to Canada.
"The government of Canada has obviously been pushing for that and welcomes this decision by the government of Egypt," he said in Malaysia.
Harper later added he believed it was a "lack of clarity and co-ordination with Egyptian bureaucracy" that was preventing Loubani and Greyson from leaving Egypt.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Zuraidah Alman
