Judge in Cairo orders release of Drexel student & 2 others

AN EGYPTIAN court yesterday ordered the release of a Drexel University student and two other Americans who had been arrested and interrogated by a prosecutor in Cairo for allegedly throwing firebombs at police during a pro-democracy protest.

But the Drexel student, Gregory Porter, 19, of Glenside, Montgomery County, was still in police custody last night, according to Theodore Simon, a Philadelphia-based criminal-defense attorney representing Porter's family.

Despite the court order, it was not yet clear when Porter would be freed, Simon told the Daily News last night. Simon said he's been working with an Egyptian lawyer to arrange for the student's release.

Earlier yesterday, Egyptian officials said the Abdeen Court in Cairo had ordered the release of Porter and two other students, Derrik Sweeney, 19, of Georgetown University, and Luke Gates, 21, of the University of Indiana. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to the media. They did not say when the students would be released.

The State Department released a statement saying it was trying to independently confirm reports of the students' release.

"The key part is we have an order that's in place," Simon said. "I think the most important thing right now is that we're still working and taking those additional steps to get [Porter] released."

Porter, Sweeney and Gates have been studying at the American University in Cairo. They were arrested on the roof of a university building near Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square on Sunday. Officials accused them of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters.

Simon said that he and Porter's mother spoke with Porter yesterday, and that the sophomore international-studies major seemed to be doing fine after spending most of the week in an Egyptian jail.

"He was calm and measured, I believe demonstrating a maturity beyond his years," Simon said.

An emergency news bulletin posted Wednesday on the American University in Cairo website cautions students against participating in any rallies because of a "credible risk of localized arrest."

The school also set a 10 p.m. curfew and urged students to carry a cellphone and a form of photo ID at all times.

Officials at Drexel and at the Cairo university could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Simon said it was unclear whether Porter would be returning to Glenside immediately after his release.

Despite the civil unrest, Egypt's military rulers have rejected protester demands for them to step down immediately, and said yesterday that they would start the first round of parliamentary elections next week.

Nearly 40 protesters have been killed since Saturday, prompting the Egyptian military to issue an apology for the fatalities.

Tahrir Square was quiet yesterday.

- The Associated Press contributed to this report.