Egypt to dismiss civil servants linked to terrorism

CAIRO – 4 September 2017: Egypt is about to pass into law a bill that dismisses civil servants whose names are placed on terrorism lists based on judicial rulings or were involved in violent crimes or murder, Pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Awsaat revealed on Monday.

Parliamentary sources told Asharq Awsaat that Egypt’s legislature has already drafted the new law, but is waiting to pass it during a new session.

According to the Pan-Arab newspaper, parliament, in collaboration with the Central Authority for Organization and Administration (CAOA) and other security apparatuses, is currently preparing a database which includes the names of members of the Muslim Brotherhood and other militant groups.

In other words, any employee assuming public or parliamentary post that is proven to be affiliated to terrorists groups will be directly referred to court and would be taken to trial and punished accordingly.

Investigative officials said that around 5,000 employees from the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood currently hold civil servant posts, including some with leading positions.

On December 25, 2013, the Brotherhood was labeled as a terrorist group by the Egyptian authorities, following a bloody terrorist attack on security directorate of Dakahlia governorate in Delta, leaving 16 dead and more than 150 wounded.

In November 2014, the most dominating extremist organization Ansar Bait al-Maqdis pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and called itself Wilayet Sinai (Sinai State).

Lately, 870 people were arrested for being affiliated with Wilayet Sinai, including civil servants, Asharq Awsaat added.

In February 2015, President Sisi issued a bill stating that “persons affiliated with terrorist groups lose the clean reputation required to hold public posts.” Based on this bill, those persons must be removed from their posts.

In last August, Minya University, in Upper Egypt, dismissed ten professors after proving their affiliation to the Brotherhood group, most notably Saad al-Katatni who has been imprisoned since 2013 on charges of murder and violence incitement.