An Egyptian administrative court yesterday overturned a decision by a special committee to seize the assets of the Muslim Brotherhood's leaders, Reuters reported.
Brotherhood activities were banned last September and the government formed a committee a month later to manage the group's funds and properties.
The committee froze the assets of many Brotherhood leaders as part of a crackdown that saw hundreds killed and thousands arrested after the army ousted the first freely Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.
In the ruling, the court said the decisions made by the committee "ignored the provisions of the constitution and the law".
"A criminal court is the appropriate body to freeze funds and property, and preventing owners from accessing what is theirs cannot be done through an administrative decision," the ruling said.
It did not identify which Brotherhood leaders' assets were covered under the 17 rulings it halted, and only named the assets as "companies and business establishments and schools".
The court did not comment further and calls to a lawyer representing the Brotherhood were unanswered.
