Egyptian security forces charged over killing of Brotherhood member, protester

(GNN) - An Egyptian policeman was charged on Wednesday with murdering a suspected Muslim Brotherhood member and two members of the security forces were charged with concealing evidence in the death of a protester, judicial and security sources said.

Judicial actions against members of the security forces are rare in Egypt, where the police have reasserted powers eroded during and after the 2011 popular uprising that ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Critics say the police now act with impunity, an accusation the Interior Ministry denies.

Judicial and security sources said a public prosecutor in Giza referred a police officer to court on a murder charge after he confessed to shooting dead a member of the outlawed Brotherhood last month in a hospital.

The Brotherhood member had been taken there for treatment after being shot by police while trying to plant a bomb, the sources said. The policeman said he shot the man dead in the hospital after he was provoked by gloating about a recent Islamist militant attack on security forces in the Sinai region.

The Brotherhood says it is committed to peaceful activism.

In a separate case, public prosecutor Hesham Barakat charged a police major general and a security forces conscript with concealing evidence in the shooting death of Shaimaa Sabbagh.

The 32-year-old mother was killed by a police officer who fired birdshot to try to disperse a street protest in central Cairo in January marking the fourth anniversary of the anti-Mubarak revolt. A photograph of Sabbagh bleeding to death went viral and caused an international outcry.

The charge of concealing evidence carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison, judicial sources said.

On Tuesday, the prosecutor referred another police officer to court for action that "led to the death of" Sabbagh -- a lesser charge than murder.

The interior minister at the time of both the hospital and Sabbagh incidents was sacked this month for unspecified reasons.

Western officials have voiced concern for human rights in Egypt as Cairo has pursued as fierce crackdown on all political opposition under President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi since he toppled Islamist predecessor Mohamed Mursi of the Brotherhood while army chief in mid-2013.

Separately, an Egyptian court referred 22 alleged Brotherhood supporters charged with murder to the Grand Mufti, the country's highest Islamic legal official, the first step towards imposing a death sentence.

On Monday, the court took the same action against 14 other members of the group, including top leader Mohamed Badie.

Egypt has jailed thousands linked to the Brotherhood since the army removed Islamist president Mohamed Mursi from power in July 2013, a year after he was elected, following mass protests against his rule.

(Reuters)(Reporting by Stephen Kalin and Mahmoud Mourad; Editing by Alison Williams)

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Egypt's Sisi cuts short Ethiopia visit after 32 killed in Sinai

(AsiaTimes.ga) - Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi cut short a visit to Ethiopia for an African Union summit on Friday after Islamic State's Egyptian wing claimed the killing of at least 30 soldiers and police officers in the Sinai Peninsula.

The four separate attacks on security forces in North Sinai on Thursday night were among the bloodiest in years and the first significant assault in the region since the most active Sinai militant group swore allegiance to IS in November.

Militant attacks in Sinai, while far from Cairo and tourist attractions, has crimped government efforts to project an image of stability to woo back foreign investors and tourists driven away by frequent political violence since a popular uprising four years ago that overthrew veteran autocrat Hosni Mubarak.

Sisi left Addis Ababa after meeting with the Ethiopian premier following the AU summit's opening session, an Egyptian official there told Reuters.

Most of Thursday's casualties occurred in the bombing of a military hotel and base in al-Arish, the heavily guarded Sinai provincial capital.

Security sources in Sinai said three military planes left al-Arish for Cairo on Friday morning carrying 30 body bags, some of them containing corpses left in pieces by the bomb blasts. They said at least five men were in critical condition and the death toll was likely to rise.

Two children, one of them 6 months old, died on Friday from wounds suffered on Thursday night as soldiers fought militants in a village near Sheikh Zuweid, close to the Gaza Strip and Israel's border, local medical sources said.

An army statement on Friday did not give a final death toll. It said the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces had met and was determined to continuing supporting the state's efforts to complete a "roadmap for achieving security and stability."

A major investment conference is set for March, where the government hopes to attract billions for huge infrastructure projects, and Egypt will also launch long-awaited parliamentary elections the same month.

SUSTAINED MILITANT VIOLENCE
But attempts to reinstate stability in the Arab world's largest country have been impeded in part by the Sinai-based Islamist insurgency that has intensified since the army ousted elected president Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in mid-2013 after mass unrest over his rule.

Hundreds of security force members have been killed since.

The Brotherhood denies links to the insurgents but the government makes no distinction between the two groups.

"All of us are in sorrow over what happened yesterday in Sinai but Egypt is paying the price of confronting terrorism and extremism," Sisi said in a statement carried by the state news agency MENA.

The most active group, Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, changed its name to Sinai Province last year when it swore allegiance to Islamic State, the ultra-radical Sunni militant group that has seized swathes of Iraq and Syria, drawing U.S.-led air strikes.

A daily news broadcast released via Islamic State Twitter feeds said Thursday's attacks had been led by "men of the Islamic State".

Egyptian soldiers and police are often targeted at outposts outside the widely desolate, rugged Sinai's main towns. But the assault on military facilities in al-Arish could signal an escalation in their capabilities, according to Zack Gold of the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.

This week had already been a bloody one in Egypt. More than 25 people were killed at the weekend when security forces fired at protesters angered by what many perceive as a police state re-established by Sisi since Mursi's fall.

After two attacks in October in which 33 security personnel were killed, Egypt declared a state of emergency in the area where Sinai borders Gaza and accelerated plans to create a buffer strip.

Sisi, who as army chief toppled Mursi, says Egypt is fighting a war on terrorism and enjoys the support of Western and Gulf Arab allies.

(GA, Reuters, ATimes)(Additional reporting by Omar Fahmy and Mahmoud Mourad in Cairom, Edmund Blair in Addis Ababa; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Egyptian liberals demand Mubarak face court over attack by supporters on camels

(AsiaTimes.ga) - Liberal Egyptian parties filed new judicial complaints against ousted former ruler Hosni Mubarak on Sunday, including over a deadly camel charge against protesters led by his supporters, after a string of court rulings in his favor.

The Democratic Current coalition filed the complaints to the public prosecutor, requesting an investigation of possible links between Mubarak and some of the most dramatic violence of the revolt.

Government supporters on horses and camels charged into crowds gathered in Tahrir Square, triggering a battle that was seen as a crucial moment in the 18-day uprising against Mubarak's three decades of iron-fisted rule. Around a dozen people died in the attack.



The dismissal of the most high profile charges against Mubarak, that he conspired to kill hundreds of protesters during the 2011 uprising that toppled him, has deepened fears among activists that the old guard is making a comeback.

It is not clear when the public prosecutor will decide on the request.

Twenty-five officials and Mubarak allies were charged with murder and other crimes in relation to the incident. One of them died and the rest were acquitted.

"We're making these complaints not for revenge against Mubarak or his family," said Khaled Dawoud, spokesman for the liberal Dostour party, at the steps of the public prosecutor's office.

"We want to stress the principle that young Egyptian people should not be killed without accountability."

A court in November dropped charges that Mubarak conspired to murder protesters during the 18 days of the uprising that started on Jan. 25, and also found him innocent in a graft case.

This month, a court ordered a retrial in a separate corruption case, opening the possibility that Mubarak could walk free after being jailed since 2011.

Egypt's economy was hit by upheaval triggered by Mubarak's fall but it has started to recover. Sisi has restored some stability and taken bold steps on the economy praised by foreign investors such as reducing fuel subsidies.

(Editing by Michael Georgy and Jon Boyle)(GA, Reuters, Asia Times)

Canadian minister hopes for Jazeera reporter's release after Cairo talks

(ATimes) - Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird said after "constructive" talks in Cairo on Thursday he hoped that a Canadian journalist working for Al Jazeera television could be released before long from an Egyptian prison.

Canadian-Egyptian Mohamed Fahmy, Egyptian Baher Mohamed and Australian Peter Greste were sentenced last June to between seven and 10 years for spreading lies to help a "terrorist organization", a reference to Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in November the issue of a presidential pardon was under discussion. Egypt's High Court ordered a retrial of the men on Jan. 1.

Baird sounded cautiously optimistic after talks with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shukri.

"I would characterize the meeting as constructive and worthwhile, and we look forward to resolving that issue. It's still not resolved today, but that’s why I came," he told a news conference.

"This is a complex case ... The minister understands how important this is to me, to all Canadians. I thought today’s meeting was a very constructive step on the road to a successful resolution."

Rights groups and Western governments have criticized the detentions. Al Jazeera says the trial was flawed and has demanded their release.

Baird seemed hopeful that Fahmy could be released soon.

"We’re working toward a constructive resolution on that sooner rather than later," he said.

Fahmy's fiancee, Marwa Omara, said he had signed documents required for his deportation to Canada and that she was told the process was in its final stages.

"I had high expectations that Mohamed might be released during Mr. Baird's visit, but I understand it's a big case and it's going to take some time," she said after a 15-minute meeting with Baird.

Qatar was one of the main supporters of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi and his Muslim Brotherhood during their year in power before his government was ousted by Sisi, then army chief, in July 2013.

Egypt has accused Al Jazeera of being a mouthpiece for the now-banned Brotherhood, which the channel denies.

Sisi met a Qatari envoy last month, the latest step in diplomatic efforts led by Saudi Arabia to help patch up ties.

Shukri told Reuters this week a decision by the Doha-based channel to halt broadcasts last month of its Egypt-focused operation Al Jazeera Mubasher Misr, whose content angered Cairo, would help improve strained ties with Qatar.

(Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)(GA, Reuters, Asia Times)

GNN - Two jailed Jazeera journalists seek presidential deportation from Egypt

GNN - Two of three Al Jazeera journalists jailed in Egypt have applied to be deported under a new law after the country's highest court ordered their retrial but did not free them as their families had hoped.
Australian Peter Greste, Canadian-Egyptian Mohamed Fahmy and Egyptian Baher Mohamed were sentenced in June to seven to 10 years in jail for spreading lies to help a "terrorist organization" - a reference to Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.

Egypt's High Court ordered their retrial on Thursday citing procedural flaws in the original trial, which was condemned by human rights groups and Western governments.

The reporters' imprisonment is a thorny issue for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who ousted his Islamist predecessor in July 2013 and cracked down on the Brotherhood, as he seeks to prove his commitment to reform.

Their families say they are paying the price for a deterioration in ties between Qatar, which owns Al Jazeera, and Egypt following the Brotherhood's expulsion from power.

Doha supported the Brotherhood during its year in power but a recent Saudi push to heal the rift had raised expectations the reporters would be freed.

The November law allows for foreign convicts or suspects to be transferred to their country to serve their sentences or to be tried there. It was not clear how it might be applied in the Al Jazeera case since it has yet to be used and there are no precedents.

Greste's lawyer Mostafa Nagy told Reuters in Cairo he had presented the prosecution with a deportation request last month but received no response. He planned to make a new request in light of Thursday's ruling and hoped it would be accepted.

Greste's brother, Andrew, echoed those hopes.

"Now that Peter is essentially an innocent man, he's not convicted any more, it does allow for some room to move and for him (Sisi) to step in ... and deport him," he told reporters in Brisbane.

Fahmy's brother Adel also told Reuters in Cairo that his lawyers had formally asked Egypt's presidency and prosecution that he be pardoned or deported.

Despite widespread criticism of the case, Sisi has resisted intervening directly, citing judicial independence.

Defense lawyers say the retrial could begin within a month. The judge has the power to release all three on bail at the first hearing.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said: "There are more avenues...for Peter Greste, his family and his legal team to pursue."

(GNN, AIP, Reuters)(Additional reporting and writing by Lin Noueihed, Editing by Ralph Boulton)

Israel strikes Gaza after militants resume rocket fire

#GNN - Israel launched air #strikes across the #Gaza Strip on Friday in response to Palestinian rockets after Egyptian-mediated talks failed to extend a 72-hour truce in a month-old war.

Egypt later called for a resumption of the ceasefire, saying only a few points remained to be agreed. Palestinian factions said they would meet Egyptian mediators later in the day but there was no sign of any imminent deal.

An Israeli government official said Israel would not negotiate with Palestinians while militants continued to unleash missiles.

As warning sirens sounded in southern Israel, the military said "Gaza terrorists" had fired at least 57 rockets on Friday and the "Iron Dome" interceptor system had been used against some of them.

Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees claimed responsibility for the salvoes from the Hamas-dominated enclave.

Accusing Hamas of breaking the ceasefire, Israel said several of the rockets had been launched about four hours before the truce was due to end at 8 a.m. (0500 GMT). Heavier barrages followed shortly after the ceasefire period expired.

By resuming the attacks, Gaza militants appeared to be trying to put pressure on Israel, making clear they were ready to fight on to end a blockade of the coastal territory that both Israel and neighbouring Egypt have imposed.

In the first casualties since hostilities resumed on Friday, Palestinian medical officials said a 10-year-old boy was killed in an Israeli strike near a mosque in Gaza City. An Islamic Jihad militant and three other Palestinians were killed in attacks from the air in the southern Gaza Strip.

In Israel, police said two people were injured by mortar fire from Gaza.

Israel's armed forces said they had responded to the cross-border attacks by targeting 51 "terror sites" across the Gaza Strip, including rocket launchers and military compounds and headquarters, and would continue to strike Hamas and its infrastructure and operatives.

Israeli Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet, said on Channel 2 television that Gaza militants "have to get hit in return, and not in the same proportion, but to a greater degree".

Heavy civilian casualties and destruction during Israel's campaign against militants in packed residential areas of the Gaza Strip have raised international alarm over the past month, but efforts to prolong a ceasefire at talks in Cairo failed.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement he was deeply disappointed an extension of the ceasefire could not be agreed, and he condemned the renewed rocket fire on Israel.

"The Secretary-General firmly calls on the parties not to resort to further military action that can only exacerbate the already appalling humanitarian situation in Gaza," it said.

GO-BETWEENS
Israel had earlier said it was ready to agree to an extension as Egyptian go-betweens pursued negotiations with Israeli and Palestinian delegates.

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Israel had rejected most Palestinian demands. "However, we did not close the door and will continue with the negotiations," he said.

His comments came in response to a statement from the Egyptian foreign ministry, which indirectly blamed the Palestinians for refusing to end the truce. Egypt said an agreement had been reached on the major issues of concern to the Palestinian people and only a few sticking points remained.

The Palestinians had wanted Israel to agree in principle to demands which include lifting the blockade of the Gaza Strip, the release of prisoners and the opening of a sea port, but this had been rebuffed, Abu Zuhri said.

Israel has shown little interest in easing its naval blockade of Gaza and controls on overland traffic and airspace, suspecting Hamas could restock with weapons from abroad.

Livni said the issue of a sea port should be part of wider final-status peace negotiations with the Palestinians and that Hamas, in the current indirect talks mediated by Egypt, should not be rewarded for "using force against Israeli citizens."

In Cairo, the foreign ministry called on both sides "to return immediately to the ceasefire and exploit the opportunity available to resume negotiations on the very limited sticking points that remain in the fastest possible time".

In Gaza, some families who had returned to their homes in the northern town of Beit Hanoun during the ceasefire gathered their belongings and headed back to the United Nations shelters where they had sought refuge over the past few weeks.

Beit Hanoun resident Yamen Mahmoud, a 35-year-old father of four, said: "Today I am fleeing again. I am not against resistance but we need to know what to do. Is it war or peace?"

Gaza officials say the war has killed 1,880 Palestinians, most of them civilians. Hamas said on Thursday it had executed an unspecified number of Palestinians as Israeli spies.

Israel says 64 of its soldiers and three civilians have died in the fighting that began on July 8, after a surge in Palestinian rocket salvoes into Israel.

It expanded its air and naval bombardment of the Gaza Strip into a ground offensive on July 17, and pulled its infantry and armour out of the enclave on Tuesday after saying it had destroyed more than 30 infiltration tunnels dug by militants.

Hamas's refusal to extend the ceasefire could further alienate Egypt, whose government has been hostile to the group and which ultimately controls Gaza's main gateway to the world, the Rafah border crossing.

A source at Cairo airport said the Israeli delegation left shortly before the truce expired.

"Despite being in Cairo for a week to negotiate, we have not heard Israel’s view on this demand or that demand, we’ve only heard it through the media. I say this is wrong," senior Fatah leader Azzam al-Ahmed, who heads the Palestinian negotiating team, told reporters in a hotel in the Egyptian capital.

"We present demands that have to do with stopping the war. We hope these demands are met. It would pave the way for a political process that would end the violence and the war and end the bloodshed," he said.

In the occupied West Bank on Friday, a 20-year-old Palestinian was shot dead during an anti-Israeli protest outside the settlement of Psagot, the Palestinian ambulance service said. A military spokeswoman said troops first used riot control methods but then opened fire, "confirming a hit", after stone-throwing protesters reached the settlement's fence.

(GNN)(Reuters)(AIP)(Additional reporting by Stephen Kalin and Maggie Fick in Cairo, Allyn Fisher-Ilan and Ori Lewis in Jerusalem, Ali Sawafta in Ramallah and Michelle Nichols in New York; Writing by Jeffrey Heller in Jerusalem; Editing by Andrew Roche)