Press release
Cairo:18/3/2003

The Court of Cassation acquitted the defendants

in the case of Ibn Khaldoun center

 The Egyptian Court of Cassation acquitted today 18^th March Dr. Saad El Deen Ibrahim and two of Ibn Khaldoun Center , Mohamed Hassanein and Nadia Ahmed Abd EL Nour, while Magda Ibrahim El Beh received 6 months suspended sentence. With this verdict, the court put an end to  the case of Ibn Kahaldoun Center which has began on 30^th June 2000 when the Egyptian Security forces arrested Dr. Saad El Deen Ibrahim and a number of Ibn Khaldon center’s members. The defendants were charged among other charges with collecting funds without permission as well as preparing false reports and forging electoral cards.

Worth mentioning that, EOHR’s lawyers followed up and attended the court sessions as the Criminal State Security Court (CSSC) issued a sentence to imprison Dr. Saad El Deen Ibrahim for 7 years due to the Militiry Ruler’s decree no. 4 of 1992 .  In this regard, the defendant’s lawyers challenged the CSSC’s decision before the Court of Cassation which accepted it and ordered the case to be retried before the CSSC  in its session held on 6^th February 2002. The CSSC approved the previous sentence against Dr. Saad El Deen and other defendants in the session on 29^th June 2002.

Once again. On 3^rd December 2002, the Court of Cassation accepted Dr. Saad El Deen Ibrahim and other defendants’ challenged the CSSC’s decision. The session on 7^th January 2003 was determined for the hearings of the case and the defendants were released. A session on 4^th  February 2003 was determined for the hearings of the defense before the court acquitted the defendants in today’s session.

While EOHR believes that there shall not be comments on judicial verdicts, it welcomes the verdict of the Court of Cassation. In this context, EOHR calls upon the Egyptian authorities to cease the implementation of the emergency law and its consequences particularly the military decree no.4 of 1992 which is issued due to emergency law which is used against civilians and civil society activists.