Egypt court orders Morsi detention over Hamas collaboration

[DJKeefy]

A top Egyptian court has ordered the detention of ousted president Mohamed Morsi for 15 days pending investigations into his suspected collaboration with Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

Morsi is accused of collaborating with Hamas to escape, along with other political prisoners, from Wadi El-Natroun Prison and destroy prison records during the 2011 uprising; collaborating with Hamas to attack police stations during the uprising; the intentional killing and abduction of police officers and prisoners during the uprising, and espionage.

The alleged crimes are being investigated by a Cairo court that was tasked with determining how inmates – including Mohamed Morsi and other senior member of the Muslim Brotherhood – escaped from prison in late January 2011 during the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak.

Brotherhood spokesman Ahmed Aref said that the decision of the investigating judge to detain ousted president Morsi for 15 days pending investigation was at the behest of the armed forces after the pressures they faced to release Morsi.

In exclusive statements to Ahram Arabic website, Aref said that he believed that the decision to detain Morsi was a message to the international community that Morsi is being prosecuted.

"Is there a lawyer attending the investigations with Dr. Morsi? Was Dr. Morsi given a chance to defend himself? Where is Dr. Morsi in the first place? And was he transferred to the investigating judge or did the judge go to him?" Aref asked.

Leading Brotherhood member Essam El-Erian said that the decision to detain Morsi showed the true "fascist military regime" currently in Egypt.

"Announcing a decision to detain a legitimate president who has immunity, who should not stand a trial except under specific constitutional procedures, under very suspicious timing in the absence of the simplest concepts of the state of law as well in the absence of his lawyer, shows the nature of the current struggling fascist military regime," said El-Erian on his official Facebook page earlier Friday.

"The answer to this will be peaceful million man protests in the squares. Our strength is in our peacefulness and our unity as a people against fascism, oppression and corruption," said El-Erian.

Hamas also criticised the decision on Friday to detain Morsi for questioning over suspected collaboration with the Palestinian militant group.

"Hamas condemns this move since it is based on the premise that the Hamas movement is hostile," spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told AFP.

Mohamed Morsi has been held incommunicado at a secret location since he was removed from the presidency by the army on 3 July following mass nationwide protests.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/77419.aspx