Egypt’s political digest July 4

 

(AP)- Egypt’s government-sanctioned human rights body said Sunday that it has received reports of torture and forced disappearances, reflecting the findings of local and international human rights groups.

 

In an assessment far less critical than that of more independent organizations, the head of the National Council for Human Rights, Mohammed Fayek, said his group has also received complaints about poor conditions in prisons.

 

“We’ve received many complaints about law enforcement concerning torture and (inmates’) poor living conditions. And of course, law enforcement officials have denied such allegations,” he said.

 

 

Egypt’s coastal guards have thwarted an attempt of illegal migration by a total of 21 Somali immigrants along shores of Mediterranean city of Al-Burullus in Nile Delta’s Kafr al-Sheikh governorate, Youm7 reported Sunday evening. The unregistered immigrants were on their way to Italy via the Mediterranean; they now are being investigated by the concerned bodies.

 

Egypt’s northern coast has been the departure point in a number of migration attempts by hundreds of asylum seekers from the Middle East and North Africa, particularly from Egypt Syria, Iraq and Libya, via the Mediterranean Sea to Italy or Greece as gates for other European countries.

 

 

Human Rights Committee of the Egyptian House of Representatives announced Sunday that the committee members will pay a visit to state’s prisons to write a report about the political detainees, after Eid al-Fitr celebration, Committee member Atef Mekhalif told Youm7.

 

 

Arab Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives Chairperson Saad al-Gammal announced Sunday that the committee members will meet with the newly appointed Secretary General of the Arab League Ahmed Aboul Gheit soon, to discuss a number of Middle East issues, particularly political and security turmoil-stricken countries.

 

Gheit officially took up Sunday post of the Arab League Secretary-General to be a successor to Nabil al-Arabi.  The diplomat has made several strong anti-Iran statements, and emphasized the importance of keeping the Syrian army intact, regardless of the fate of President Bashar al-Assad.

 

Egypt’s Parliamentarian the fact-finding committee, tasked to investigate into the corruption of the wheat supply, filed a complaint before the General Prosecution over stealing 50 million EGP due to corruption of wheat procurement in only one silo the committee members visited, an anonymous official told Youm7 Sunday. There are allegations of wasting 240 million EGP (about $27 million) of wheat procurement from the silos.

 

Egypt’s Minister of Tourism Yahya Rashid issued Sunday a decision to dissolve the Council of the Egyptian Tourism Federation, which was elected on Feb 28, 2015.  A committee will be formed to take on the tasks of the council for six months until electing new board of directors. Although the decision did not mention the reasons of the dissolving, but media outlets said the decision came over “irregularities.”