Egypt to Put Ousted President Morsi on Trial in New Terror Case

Egypt’s public prosecutor charged ousted President Mohamed Morsi and fellow Islamists with offenses including plotting terrorist attacks with foreign organizations and divulging state secrets.

The prosecution said in a statement that the international organization of Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood carried out acts of terrorism in Egypt in order to sow chaos, and planned an alliance with groups including Palestinian movement Hamas and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, among other offenses. Mohamed Badie, the Brotherood’s leader, is among more than 30 others to be tried in the case.

Morsi, Egypt’s first democratically elected civilian leader, and allies have been charged with multiple crimes since Egypt’s army toppled his government in July. At the first hearing last month, Morsi dismissed the charges against him and said he was still the legitimate president.

Mohamed el-Damaty, a spokesman for the defense team in that trial, couldn’t immediately be reached to comment on the new charges.

Violence has escalated since the army’s intervention, which was followed by a crackdown on Morsi’s supporters that killed hundreds.

Attacks on security forces, mostly in the Sinai peninsula, have increased and authorities have blamed the Brotherhood for instigating violence. The group denies the accusation and says it’s committed to peaceful resistance against what it says was a military coup.

Source: Bloomberg