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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Egypt reopens probe of Hamas members death |
| 2009-12-18 |
| [Ma'an] Egypt's General Prosecutor Abul Majid Mahmoud decided to reopen a criminal investigation into the death of Yousef Abu Zuhri, the brother of a high-ranking Hamas official, sources said on Wednesday. Hamas alleged that Abu Zuhri, who is the brother of movement spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, died under torture by the Egyptian security forces in October. Egypt denies the charge. The case highlights the often strained relations between Hamas and Egypt, whose secular authoritarian government is supported by the United States. Egyptian attorney Nasser Amin, who is representing Abu Zhuri's family, said the prosecutor immediately responded to his petition to reopen the case. In a statement, Amin repeated that Yousef Abu Zuhri died while being held in Burj Al-Arab prison in Alexandria. Amin added that the appeal contained information about the circumstances of the death that contradict the official account given by the Egyptian security forces. He said he has amassed dozens of documents relating to the case, but said he would make them public so they would also be available to the Egyptian prosecution. The attorney also said that while waiting for the results of a criminal investigation, he would also look into the possibility of a civil case. "Whatever was the cause of death, justice must be applied," the statement said. Egyptian security forces arrested 38-year-old Yousef Abu Zuhri in an apartment in the border town of Al-Arish, alleging that he infiltrated Egypt through an underground tunnel from Gaza. He was later taken to Alexandria where he died in prison. |
| Posted by:Fred |