Canberra - Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott says his government will work to get an imprisoned Australian journalist returned from Egypt “as quickly as possible”, adding that Egypt's new president might intervene.
Australian Peter Greste was one of three Al Jazeera journalists sentenced by a Cairo court on Monday to at least seven years in prison on terrorism-related charges related to interviewing the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
Abbott told reporters on Tuesday his government is “shocked, dismayed and bewildered” by the decision.
Abbott said he had a “very constructive discussion” at the weekend with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on the issue.
Australia's Foreign Department has called on Egypt's deputy ambassador to make an official objection to the court ruling.
The ambassador is currently in Cairo. - Sapa-AP