Minn. man freed after 9-month captivity in UAE

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — An American man has been released from prison in the United Arab Emirates where he had been held for nine months for posting a parody video online, a spokeswoman for his family said today.

Shezanne Cassim, 29, of Woodbury, Minn., was in custody in the United Arab Emirates for nine months in connection with the video that satirized youth culture in Dubai. He was arrested in April, and had been kept at a maximum-security prison in Abu Dhabi since June.

In a brief news release, Jennifer Gore, a spokeswoman for Cassim's family in the U.S., said he will arrive at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport later this afternoon. It was not immediately clear when he was released from prison.

The UAE-owned daily, The National, has said Cassim and his co-defendants were accused of defaming the country's image abroad. Cassim's supporters said he was charged with endangering state security under a 2012 cybercrimes law that tightened penalties for challenging authorities.