A Muslim cleric detained without charges in Egypt since December 2014‚ Sheikh Abdus Salaam Bassiouni‚ has arrived back in Johannesburg.
He was greeted at Johannesburg's OR Tambo Airport on Sunday by family. His son Bilal told Radio Islam they are ecstatic.
"He is now with his family. As from day one there was no charges‚ nothing against my father. This whole thing has been arbitrary and it has come to an end finally‚" he said.
Last year‚ the 65-year-old cleric told the Sunday Times that he had to sleep on the cold floor of a prison cell for almost 500 days.
His release from custody was ordered in March 2016‚ at a pre-trial hearing.
He said after his release from Tora Prison‚ on the outskirts of the capital‚ Cairo‚ he had been moved to different police stations‚ unsure what was going to happen next.
Bassiouni was detained when he entered Egypt with his family to attend his daughter’s engagement. On arrival at Cairo International Airport‚ he and his son Bilal were taken into custody.
They were interrogated separately about their political affiliations and questioned whether they were members of the Muslim Brotherhood‚ which Egypt’s government has declared a terrorist organisation.
Bilal was released 20 hours later.
However‚ Bassiouni‚ who holds dual Egyptian and South African citizenship and has lived in South Africa for 25 years‚ had a far longer wait for freedom.
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