Updated

The parents of jailed Australian journalist Peter Greste say they are haunted and depressed by images of him caged in an Egyptian court.

Greste is one of three Al-Jazeera English journalists who appeared in a Cairo court on Wednesday along with 17 other defendants on charges of joining and aiding a terrorist group and endangering national security.

Greste appeared with other defendants in a cage dock, wearing a white prison uniform.

His parents Juris and Lois Greste told reporters in their hometown of Brisbane on Thursday that while the public support in the campaign to free their son had lifted their spirits, they were horrified by the images from his court appearance.