Former leader of Unionist Party Refaat el Saeed laid to rest

CAIRO - 18 August 2017: A funeral was held on Friday for Refaat el Saeed, the former leader of the National Progressive Unionist Party, known as El Tagammu, following Friday prayers at Al Hamd Mosque in Cairo's Mokattam district.

El Saeed passed away on Thursday at the age of 84 at his home in Mokattam district.

The funeral was attended by representatives of the cabinet and the Interior Ministry, as well as political parties' members and parliamentarians.

The Egyptian presidency mourned the death of the prominent politician in a statement late Thursday.

In statements to MENA on Thursday, current head of the party Sayed Abdel Aal noted that el Saeed suffered no medical issues before he died in his home in Mokattam neighborhood.

Born on October 11, 1932, El-Saeed held two doctorates in history, and was a part-time lecturer at the American University in Cairo.

He became the leader of the Tagammu Party in 2005, a post he held until 2013.