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BySarahElDeeb The Associated Press CAIRO For a year, three Al-Jazeera English journal- ists have been locked up in Egypt on terrorism-related charges widely viewed as trumped up for political reasons. Now, a possible thaw in tensions between Egypt, and Qatar— where Al- Jazeera is based and is funded— has raised a glim- mer of hope that the three journalists may be able to resume their lives. A re- trial, deportation or a par- don are all possibilities, but the lack of certainty pro- longs the torment of the defendants, their families and other journalists. "It is a very tough expe- rience, not only on him but on his family," said Marwa Omara, the fiancee of Mo- hammed Fahmy, the Cana- dian-Egyptian journalist who was Al-Jazeera Eng- lish's acting Cairo bureau chief. Fahmy and Australian journalist Peter Greste were sentenced to seven years in prison in a trial that ended in June on charges of as- sisting the Muslim Broth- erhood in a plot to desta- bilize Egypt. The team's Egyptian producer, Baher Mohammed, got 10 years — seven on the same charges and three more because he was found with a spent bul- let casing he picked up as a souvenir, considered pos- session of ammunition. Egypt's Court of Cassa- tion begins hearing their appeal on Thursday. It takes place as Egypt and Qatar appear to be mov- ing to resolve their bitter ri- valry. The tension followed the military's ouster of Is- lamist President Moham- med Morsi in July 2013, and Qatar's support of the Brotherhood and his Is- lamist supporters. Omara said the trial re- ally targeted Al-Jazeera and Qatar, not the journalists, and so will be resolved po- litically. Fahmy "is a pawn in a cold war between Egypt and Qatar," she told The Associated Press. The families of Fahmy, Greste and Mohammed are accustomed to the risks of their sons' jobs. But they never expected to be dragged into a big- ger political dispute in a region roiled by a turbu- lent transition. The ar- rest has thrown their lives into confusion. Omara and Fahmy had to put off their wedding, which had been scheduled four months af- ter his arrest. Mohammed's wife, Jehane Rashed, deliv- ered their third son while he was in prison. "I know it is a dangerous job...But I never thought I would have to defend my husband against being called a traitor to his coun- try," Rashed told AP. The unprecedented ar- rest and prosecution on terrorism charges was part of an escalated crackdown on journalists in Egypt in general following Morsi's ouster. There are at least 12 other Egyptian journal- ists arrested since last year who are still behind bars, facing various charges in- cluding participating in protests or using violence. The three Al-Jazeera journalists were detained in a Dec. 29, 2013 raid on the Cairo hotel room they were using as an office. The arrest came as the govern- ment was cracking down on Islamists following Mor- si's ouster. Authorities ac- cused Al-Jazeera of acting as a mouthpiece for Morsi's Brotherhood and threaten- ing national security. The station denied the accusa- tions and said the journal- ists were doing their job, covering protests by Mor- si's supporters. In the subsequent trial, no evidence was put for- ward backing accusations the three falsified footage to foment unrest. Prose- cutors simply presented edited new reports by the journalists, including Is- lamist protests and in- terviews with politicians. Other footage submitted as evidence had nothing to do with the case, including a report on a veterinary hos- pital and Greste's past re- ports out of Africa. Rights groups dismissed the trial as a sham. The U.S. State Depart- ment has regarded the trial with alarm. On Mon- day, spokesman Jeff Rathke said the U.S. was express- ing its concerns over the imprisonment of the al- Jazeera journalists di- rectly to the Egyptian gov- ernment. "We believe that all jour- nalists should be able to do their jobs free from intim- idation or any fear of retri- bution," Rathke told report- ers. "We continue to urge the Egyptian government to respect the freedom of the press, protect civil so- ciety and uphold the rule of law, which is crucial to Egypt's long-term stability." Despite hopes for a solu- tion now, the families are taking nothing for granted. Nothing is certain — it's not even sure that Egypt and Qatar have turned a corner. "We are biting our nails. And the next three days are going to be pretty tough," Greste's mother, Lois, told AP in Cairo, where she and his father Juris have come to attend the appeal's opening. PRESS FREEDOM Ja il ed i n Eg yp t, j ou rn al is ts ' fate remains uncertain LEFTERISPITARAKIS—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Demonstrators, some with black tape over their mouths to illustrate the silencing of free speech and journalists, hold up placards across the street from the Egyptian Embassy in central London, on Monday. ROSHAN MUGHAL — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Pakistani Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi speaks during a rally at Muzaffarabad, in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, Pakistan. By Zarar Khan and Rebecca Santana The Associated Press ISLAMABAD A Pakistani court Monday suspended a detention order keeping the alleged planner of the Mumbai terror attacks in jail, possibly paving the way for his release, officials said. The prospect of Zaki-ur- Rahman Lakhvi going free presents an embarrassing turn of events for the Pak- istani government that has vowed to crack down hard on militancy following the Dec. 16 Taliban school at- tack in Peshawar that left at least 148 people dead, mostly schoolchildren. It also raises the prospect of a serious po- litical conflict with India, which has long-accused Is- lamabad of being soft on its home-grown militants. Lakhviisoneofsevenmen on trial in Pakistan in con- nection with the 2008 attack in the Indian city of Mumbai that killed 166 people. Lakhvi is still in prison, pending the posting of his bail money, and Pakistani officials could try to fight the court's decision. An immediate condemnation by neighboring India, call- ing the development "ex- tremely disturbing," under- scored how contentious the issue remains. The ruling came at a hearing in the capital of Is- lamabad, said prosecutor Jahanagir Jadoon. Monday's developments stemmed from a surprise Dec. 18 ruling in which the judge in a Pakistani anti- terrorism court hearing Lakhvi's case granted him bail, saying there was not enough evidence to hold him. The government imme- diately ordered his deten- tion for 30 days under a law giving them leeway to detain certain suspects. Lakhvi then appealed the detention order. Monday'shearinginasep- arate court was to hear that appeal. Judge Noorul Haq Qureshi said no grounds were provided Monday to continue Lakhvi's detention, according to Jadoon. The judge set another hearing date for Jan. 15 and said that if the Inte- rior Ministry provides ev- idence to justify Lakhvi's continued detention, he could reverse the Monday order, Jadoon said. A spokesman for the prime minister could not be reached for comment Mon- day, and Pakistani television reported that senior officials were meeting at the Interior Ministry to discuss the case. News of Lakhvi's possible release puts a spotlight on Pakistan's policies toward militancy just as it is pledg- ing to get tough on terror- ism following the Peshawar attack. Mumbai attack planner gets detention suspended PAKISTAN By Jill Lawless The Associated Press LONDON A Virgin Atlantic jet bound from London to Las Vegas turned back and made an emergency land- ing at Gatwick Airport on Monday after developing a problem with its landing gear. The airline confirmed the Boeing 747-400, car- rying 447 passengers and 15 crew members, landed safely about four hours af- ter it took off. Television images showed the jet on the runway as fire trucks and ambulances waited nearby. Gatwick said several passengers suffered minor injuries. The incident caused ma- jor disruption to travelers. Gatwick's only runway was closed for more than three hours, until about 2 p.m. EDT as the Virgin plane was inspected. Departing flights were suspended, and inbound planes were diverted to other airports. The airport said in a statement that it would "take some time" for nor- mal service to resume. The airline said the plane undertook "a non- standard landing proce- dure" because of "a tech- nical issue with one of the landing gears." The airport said the flight, VS43, took off at about 11:45 a.m. Mon- day. Flight-tracking web- sites show it circled off the coast of southwest Eng- land before turning back to Gatwick, south of Lon- don. It circled near the air- port, and photos appeared to show a set of wheels on its right-side landing gear had not fully descended. Emergency services were on standby for the landing — standard pro- cedure when a plane has to land with a technical problem. The plane's emer- gency chutes were not de- ployed and passengers dis- embarked by stairs. P a s s e n g e r M i k e Kaufman said the crew re- mained calm and profes- sional throughout the four- hour crisis. "Everybody gave the crew a big round of ap- plause when we landed," he told Sky News from the plane. "I can't wait to get into the terminal and have a gin and tonic now." LANDING GEAR PROBLEM Virgin Atlantic plane makes emergency landing THE ASSOCATIED PRESS Emergency services gather around a jet that made an emergency landing at Gatwick Airport on Monday. By Dmytro Vlasov The Associated Press KIEV, UKRAINE Ukraine's president signed a bill Monday dropping his na- tion's nonaligned status but signaled that he will hold a referendum before seeking NATO member- ship. Using a news confer- ence to sign the legislation, which parliament had ad- opted last week, Petro Po- roshenko vowed to reform Ukraine's economy and military forces to meet Eu- ropean Union and NATO standards. But he also said he will leave it up to Ukrainian citizens to decide in a pop- ular vote whether to join NATO or not. "When we are able to conform to these criteria, the people of Ukraine will make up their mind about the membership," Porosh- enko said, adding that this will likely happen in the next five to six years. While public support for joining the alliance has swelled after Russia's annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in March and a pro-Rus- sia insurgency in eastern Ukraine, prospects for NATO membership in the near term appear dim. With its long-under- funded military suffering from the war with the sep- aratists and the country's economy in peril, Ukraine has much to overcome to achieve the stability that the alliance seeks in its members. Poroshenko said he is planning to meet with lead- ers of Russia, Germany and France in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, on Jan. 15 to discuss a peace settle- ment for eastern Ukraine. The four leaders previously met in France in June. Ukraine and the West have accused Russia of fu- eling the rebellion in east- ern Ukraine with troops and weapons, which Mos- cow has denied. Fighting in the east has claimed more than 4,700 people since April. Representatives of Ukraine and the rebels agreed on a cease-fire in September, but it has been frequently violated as the parties have failed to reach a deal on a line of division to create a buffer zone. Poroshenko said he still believes there is "no mili- tary solution" to the con- flict in the east, adding that he will press Russia to withdraw its soldiers from Ukraine and seal the border. 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