The Muslim Brotherhood denied the prosecution’s accusations of them being affiliated with international organisations and foreign countries in an attempt to “overthrow the Egyptian state”.The accusations were made during Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie’s prison break trial that was held Sunday, in which Badie and 25 other Brotherhood leaders were handed three year sentences and fined EGP 10,000 for insulting judiciary, out of the 130 of the total number of defendants in the case.
The trial was postponed to 20 December to hear the defence for the defendants.
The prosecution disclosed details about the prison break incident, which involved the death of at least 14 prisoners and 14 guards in Wadi El-Natrun Prison.
The prosecution claimed that the “International Organisation of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah group and other terrorist groups were involved in the operation.”
Investigations stated that “the Brotherhood planned the criminal project since 2010 in coordination with foreign countries and organisations with the aim of overthrowing the Egyptian state,” adding that “the project targeted 160 police stations and the seizure of their weapons and ammunition”.
The prosecution stated that “the Brotherhood exploited the outbreak of the revolution in January 2011 to implement its plan, which comes as part of the American project aiming to redraw the political map of the Middle-East to destabilise Arab nations through promoting political Islam groups to rule these countries.”
“The Brotherhood took advantage of limited security in some areas on the Sinai border to facilitate the entry of more than 150 armed militants using more than 30 SUVs equipped with heavy weapons,” according to the prosecution.
The prosecution accused ousted president Mohamed Morsi of using his position as head of state to grant several “jihadists and extremists” presidential pardons and then allowed them to settle in Sinai.
According to a report by news website Mada Masr, the number of jihadists released under Morsi was very limited, especially in comparison with the period before Morsi’s presidency, when Egypt was ruled by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces, and reportedly over 800 Islamists were released.
In response to these accusations, the Brotherhood’s press office representative in London Abdullah El-Haddad noted that “these are all politicised cases and the charges are all fabricated”.
“The acquittal of ousted president Mubarak, his two sons and his interior minister, among others, has left no room for doubt that the Egyptian judiciary today is highly politicised and only serves as legal cover to pass the atrocities committed by the junta against the Egyptians,” El-Hadded said.
Mubarak was acquitted Saturday on charges relating to the sale of natural gas to Israel. The judge said it was “inadmissible” for the court to rule on the murder charges. Former interior minister Habib Al-Adly, along with four of his aides were acquitted of all charges, including “killing protesters” in 2011.
“The Brotherhood will continue resisting the military dictatorship in Egypt,” El-Haddad said. “Farcical courts and sham convictions will not stop the Brotherhood from struggling peacefully for the 25 January Revolution’s aspirations together with the Egyptians.”
