Former leaders of Muslim Brotherhood Mahmoud Ezzat, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh sentenced to 15 yrs in prison

CAIRO – 29 May 2022: Former acting Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood Mahmoud Ezzat and former Islamist presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh were sentenced to 15 years in prison Sunday among several others over “harming national interests.”

The terrorism department of the Emergency National Security Criminal Court handed a life sentence to 15 defendants in the case, and 15 years in jail for Ezzat, Aboul Fotouh, and six others, as well a 10-year sentence for two others. The indictment also includes leading an illegal organization.

Aboul Fotouh was a leading member of the Brotherhood until he resigned to run for presidency in 2012 and ranked fourth as the group considered the move a betrayal and mobilized support for its own candidate Mohamed Morsi, who ultimately won the race.

Mahmoud Ezzat

Aboul Fotouh was arrested in 2018 in a case based on investigations that he and others were planning on terrorist attacks in Egypt to stir chaos. Communications by members of the group abroad were detected, revealing that they were instigating terrorism to take over the rule of Egypt, according to the investigations.

Investigations also said Aboul Fotouh was tasked with executing the terrorist scheme using his “legitimate cover” as the head of Strong Egypt party, where he and his deputy Mohamed al-Kassas were supposed to appear on T.V. channels such as Aljazeera and to release statements to spread fake news, impacting the public opinion and inciting violent protests.

He was arrested soon after appearing in a BBC interview in February 2018, where he called for “change by peaceful struggle.”