Egypt court postpones hearing in Red Sea island lawsuit

An Egyptian administrative court postponed on Tuesday a hearing in a lawsuit against the government’s decision to redraw maritime boarders to put two Red Sea islands under Saudi control.

The hearing for the lawsuit, filed by leftist lawyer Khaled Ali, is set for 7 June.

Ali said on his Facebook page on Tuesday that the court asked the state to provide certified maps and documents supporting the validity of the agreement.

The deal, which was made last month when Saudi King Salman visited Cairo, caused widespread controversy in Egypt, with dozens of protesters taking to street to oppose the deal.

Dozens were arrested for participating in the protests, including renowned human rights lawyer Malek Adly, who was also collecting signatures supporting the filing of this lawsuit. Adly is still in jail.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said in a public speech that state institutions have documents proving the islands are in fact Saudi.

The agreement, which allows Egypt to use shared Red Sea waters for the excavation of natural resources, should be discussed by the House of Representatives for ratification.

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