The head of news giant Al Jazeera has made a renewed plea for the release of journalist Mahmoud Hussein who, as of 23 October, has been locked up in an Egyptian prison for 1,400 days.

Mostefa Souag, the acting director general of Al Jazeera Media Network, is calling on “the international community to pressure Egypt” into releasing Hussein and other journalists from jail.

On the 1,400th day of Hussein’s “arbitrary and illegal detention”, Souag said: “Mahmoud’s detention, which is in grave violation of both Egyptian and international law, is deplorable. It must come to an end.