Egypt's Wasat Party leader criticises prison escape court case

Ahram Online , Sunday 23 Jun 2013

Essam Sultan accuses Ismailia court of belabouring case on the Wadi El-Natroun Prison break, from which President Morsi is escaped during January revolution, inferring anti-Morsi bias

sultan big
Lawyer Essam Sultan (Photo: Ahram)

Essam Sultan, lawyer and vice-president of the Islamist Al-Wasat Party, criticised a court ruling in the case of Wadi El-Natroun Prison, from where senior members of the Muslim Brotherhood, including President Mohamed Morsi, escaped from during the January 2011 revolution.

The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the Muslim Brotherhood's political wing, is expected to hold a conference later Sunday to give comment on the court ruling.

An Egypt court in Ismailia referred the case earlier Sunday to state prosecutors. It also called on Interpol to arrest the leaders of Lebanese Shia group Hizbullah, Palestinian group Hamas and Al-Qaeda in Sinai for their alleged role in the escape. 

In addition, 34 senior Brotherhood members will be investigated for espionage.

Sultan said Sunday in a phone-interview with Al-Jazeera news channel that the court has "exhausted itself in details that are irrelevant to the case."

He added that the court spoke of information the prosecution would "validate or deem false" and commented on its performance saying that "we did not see the same seriousness in [ousted president] Hosni Mubarak's trial."

Mubarak, his former interior minister Habib El-Adly, and six top security aides are currently on retrial on charges of killing protesters during the 18-day January 2011 uprising.

On 28 January 2011, known as the "Day of Rage" of the revolution, about 11,000 detainees escaped from Wadi El-Natroun Prison located on the Cairo-Alexandria Desert Road. Thirteen people died during the escape.

Short link: