Bahraini king’s right to obtain properties in Sinai approved

CAIRO – 5 June 2017: Egypt’s state commissioners on Sunday upheld the presidential decree allowing the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to own properties in the Sinai.

The state commissioners issued a report recommending the administrative court to reject a lawsuit that has been filed by three lawyers objecting to Decree 432 of 2016 issued by President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi that gave the King of Bahrain the right to own properties in the Sinai.

The report showed that the King of Bahrain owns three villas in Neama Bay in Sharm el-Sheikh, one of which was built on an area of 574m. The two other villas are located in a housing project belonging to the Ramo Company for Tourism and Hotels in Sharm el-Sheikh.

The Ministries of Defense and Interior, General Intelligence and the Cabinet have also approved the presidential decree equating King Hamad with Egyptians in accordance with Law 14 of 2012 that restricts land and property ownership in the Sinai to citizens who hold no other nationality and are born to Egyptian parents for residential use.

An amendment was made to the law granting the president the right to treat those who have Arab nationalities as Egyptians in terms of the ownership of land and buildings located on the Sinai Peninsula, provided that the aforementioned ministries and state bodies agree.