Aboul Fotouh’s assets to be seized per prosecution order

CAIRO - 25 February 2018: Egypt’s Attorney-General Nabil Sadek ordered the confiscation of assets belonging to the detained Islamist politician Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh and 15 others on Sunday, according a statement from his office.

The decision was based on the state’s national security investigations, which revealed that the defendants were “using their money for terrorist activities,” the statement added.

Five days ago, the South Cairo Criminal Court added Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh and 15 others to a list of “wanted terrorists”, which includes deposed President Mohamed Morsi, Muslim Brotherhood spiritual guide Mohammed Badie amongst other leaders of the group. The legal ground of the court ruling stated that Fotouh and the other co-defendants’ money was given to the banned Muslim Brotherhood group to incite violence in Egypt.

Following the issuing of the court ruling, government officials told Egypt Today on February 20 that the Central Bank of Egypt and the Real Estate Registration Office will take the necessary actions to seize and freeze Aboul Fotouh’s bank accounts.

On February 12, an Egyptian lawyer submitted an official complaint to the public prosecutor, calling for the arrest of Aboul Fotouh, after he appeared on an Al Jazeera television show from London. Lawyer Samir Sabry accused Aboul Fotouh of “spreading fake news” and demeaning Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi.