Latest news with #AymanSoliman
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
Felony charges dropped against 2 Ohio journalists arrested during immigration protest
Prosecutors dropped felony charges Wednesday against two journalists arrested at a protest that originated in Cincinnati over the detention of an Egyptian man by immigration authorities. The District Court judge agreed to dismiss with prejudice the felony rioting charges against reporter Madeline Fening and photography intern Lucas Griffith of Citybeat Cincinnati. The two were among at least 13 people arrested Thursday in a demonstration that blocked the Roebling Bridge, which carries traffic over the Ohio River between Cincinnati and Kentucky. Police in Covington, Kentucky, said those who were arrested refused to disperse and threatened officers. The journalists and others also face misdemeanor charges that include failing to disperse, obstructing emergency responders, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. The demonstration was staged in support of Ayman Soliman , an Egyptian immigrant who worked as a chaplain at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. He was detained last week after he showed up for a routine check-in with ICE officials at their office near Cincinnati. Protesters met in downtown Cincinnati and then walked across the bridge carrying a banner that read, 'Build Bridges Not Walls.' The ACLU of Kentucky, which represented the journalists, said they should never have been arrested. 'A free press is critical to a functioning democracy, and those members of the press who, like our clients, merely cover a story enjoy the full protection of the U.S. and Kentucky constitutions to do so,' staff attorney William Sharp said in a statement. 'We look forward to zealously defending them in court.'
CNN
4 days ago
- Politics
- CNN
Police clash with protesters as anti-ICE demonstration turns violent
At least 13 people were arrested after police clashed with anti-ICE protesters on the Roebling Bridge between Ohio and Kentucky. Video shows a police officer repeatedly punching a demonstrator in the head while other officers try to get him on the ground. The demonstration was in support of Ayman Soliman, a 51-year-old Egyptian national who worked as a Muslim chaplain at Cincinnati Children's Hospital and was recently detained while checking in with immigration officials.
CNN
4 days ago
- Politics
- CNN
Police clash with protesters as anti-ICE demonstration turns violent
At least 13 people were arrested after police clashed with anti-ICE protesters on the Roebling Bridge between Ohio and Kentucky. Video shows a police officer repeatedly punching a demonstrator in the head while other officers try to get him on the ground. The demonstration was in support of Ayman Soliman, a 51-year-old Egyptian national who worked as a Muslim chaplain at Cincinnati Children's Hospital and was recently detained while checking in with immigration officials.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
ICE raid sparks pandemonium as cops batter agitators blocking major bridge
Dozens were arrested, and one cop was placed on administrative duty after violent clashes broke out during an anti-ICE protest on an interstate bridge. Demonstrators protesting the immigration detention of former hospital chaplain Ayman Soliman blocked the Roebling Bridge that carries traffic between Ohio and Kentucky on Thursday. Approximately 100 people crossed the bridge from the Ohio side, but fights broke out after protesters were met by nearly 50 officers from Covington, Kentucky, reported Shocking footage showed one officer punching a protester several times as police wrestled him to the ground. Covington Police Chief Brian Valenti claimed the protester, Brandon Hill, had tried to disarm an officer carrying a pepper ball gun. However, Hill, who was left covered in scratches and bruises and with his arm in a sling, insisted he was just trying not to get shot. 'It's all very traumatic, and I'm still trying to recover from this, honestly,' Hill told WCPO. 'If anything like that happened, it's because a random gun was pointed in my face.' Covington police placed the officer who arrested Hill on administrative duty with pay while the investigation is ongoing. Body camera footage from the unidentified officer showed him chasing Hill as he was running along the sidewalk before the cop grabbed him near the ledge of the bridge. Hill can be heard on other officers' body cams yelling 'ow' and 'stop' as he got hit in the head. In the officer's use-of-force report, he wrote: '[Hill] continued to physically resist, actively concealing his hands... fearing that [he] might be attempting to access a weapon, and that the surrounding crowd opposed a threat to my safety, I delivered additional closed fist strikes.' Another video from the protest showed people wearing neon-colored vests pushing against a black SUV on the bridge. Police arrested 15 people during the protest, including two journalists, after police said they had refused to comply with orders to disperse. Covington police said in a statement that officers who initially attempted to talk with the protest's organizer were threatened and met with hostility. 'While the department supports the public's right to peaceful assembly and expression, threatening officers and blocking critical infrastructure, such as a major bridge, presents a danger to all involved,' the police said. Among the charges filed against those arrested were rioting, failing to disperse, obstructing emergency responders, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. Reporter Madeline Fening and photo intern Lucas Griffith were charged with felony rioting and several other charges, said Ashley Moor, the editor in chief of CityBeat. A judge on Friday set a $2,500 bond for each of those arrested. The arrests happened during a protest in support of Ayman Soliman, 51, an Egyptian immigrant who worked as a chaplain at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. He was detained last week after he showed up for a routine check-in with ICE officials at their office near Cincinnati. According to his lawyers, he was granted asylum in 2018 based on past persecution for his work as a journalist in Egypt during the Arab Spring uprising. His lawyers say he was jailed and tortured for reporting on the intense political conflict.
New York Post
6 days ago
- Politics
- New York Post
Journalists among those arrested during immigration-related protest in Cincinnati
Police in Cincinnati arrested at least 13 people, including two journalists, after demonstrators protesting the immigration detention of a former hospital chaplain blocked a two-lane bridge carrying traffic over the Ohio River. A reporter and a photography intern who were arrested while covering the protest for CityBeat, a Cincinnati news and entertainment outlet, were among those arraigned Friday morning in a Kentucky court. Other journalists reporting on protests around the U.S. have been have arrested and injured this year. More than two dozen were hurt or roughed up while covering protests against immigration raids in Los Angeles. 5 Cincinnati police arrested at least 13 people, including two journalists, after protesters blocked a two-lane bridge to demonstrate against the immigration detention of a former hospital chaplain. WLWT 5 Hospital chaplain Ayman Soliman in the Butler County Jail in Hamilton, Ohio, after he was detained on July 9 during a routine check-in with immigration officials. AP A Spanish-language journalist was arrested in June while covering a No Kings protest near Atlanta. Police initially charged Mario Guevara, a native of El Salvador, with unlawful assembly, obstruction of police and being a pedestrian on or along the roadway. A prosecutor dropped the charges, but Guevara had already been turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is being held in a south Georgia immigration detention center. His lawyers say he has been authorized to work and remain in the country, but ICE is trying to deport him. Video from the demonstration in Cincinnati Thursday night shows several tense moments, including when an officer punches a protester several times as police wrestle him to the ground. 5 An officer punches a protester several times as police wrestle him to the ground during the protest. @gpirnia / X Earlier, a black SUV drove slowly onto the Roebling Bridge while protesters walked along the roadway that connects Cincinnati with Kentucky. Another video shows a person in a neon-colored vest pushing against the SUV. Police in Covington, Kentucky, said those arrested had refused to comply with orders to disperse. The department said in a statement that officers who initially attempted to talk with the protest's organizer were threatened and met with hostility. Among the charges filed against those arrested were rioting, failing to disperse, obstructing emergency responders, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct. 5 Police showed up at the Roebling Bridge that connects Cincinnati with Kentucky. @gpirnia / X 5 'While the department supports the public's right to peaceful assembly and expression, threatening officers and blocking critical infrastructure, such as a major bridge, presents a danger to all involved,' Covington police said. WLWT Reporter Madeline Fening and photo intern Lucas Griffith were charged with felony rioting and several other charges, said Ashley Moor, the editor in chief of CityBeat. A judge on Friday set a $2,500 bond for each of those arrested. The arrests happened during a protest in support of Ayman Soliman, an Egyptian immigrant who worked as a chaplain at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. He was detained last week after he showed up for a routine check-in with ICE officials at their office near Cincinnati. Protesters met in downtown Cincinnati on Thursday in support of Soliman, then walked across the bridge carrying a banner that read 'Build Bridges Not Walls.' Covington police said that 'while the department supports the public's right to peaceful assembly and expression, threatening officers and blocking critical infrastructure, such as a major bridge, presents a danger to all involved.'
