Cairo Court Recommends Citizenship Case against Elbaradei, Gamal Mubarak Is Rejected

The Board of State Commissioners of Egypt’s High Administrative Court has recommended that proceedings to strip former vice president Mohamed ElBaradei and Gamal Mubarak, the son of ousted president Hosni Mubarak, of their Egyptian nationality, be rejected.

The plaintiff of the case, Hamed Seddiq, accused ElBaradei and Mubarak – once thought to be possible presidential contenders – of breaking Egyptian law by having dual nationality without the consent of the authorities.

Seddiq also accused ElBaradei of accepting a position as head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) without Egypt’s official recommendation, and posing a “threat to the country’s supreme interests.”

The State Commissioners’ report said no documents infer his having dual nationality or present evidence that he obtained one without the permission of the Interior Ministry.

The report – issued in a non-binding advisory capacity –  also stated that no evidence was presented to show that ElBaradei was a citizen of any other state except Egypt, in response to the complaint’s claims he had obtained US and Austrian citizenships.

ElBaradei has previously denied having foreign nationality.

The report also denied the existence of any reason to believe ElBaradei’s former post in the IAEA could represent any threat to Egyptian interests, adding that the Egyptian government at the time issued no order or request that he leave his position.

The State Commissioners therefore recommended that proceedings be rejected by the court.

Souce : Ahram