CAIRO: Mohamed Abdel Aal, chairman of the Social Justice Party, submitted Wednesday a complaint at the Prosecutor General’s office against lawyer Farid El-Deeb and “El-Beit Betak talk show crew for defaming an Egyptian judge during a segment in the Saturday episode.
Abdel Aal said that he also plans to hold a press conference on Saturday to “expose secrets about El-Deeb that will refute his accusations against presiding judge Al-Mohamady Qunsuah, who had sentenced businessman Hisham Talaat Moustafa for his role in the murder of Lebanese singer Suzanne Tamim.
According to Abdel Aal, during the said episode of “El-Beit Beitak, El-Deeb deliberately insulted Qunsuah by implying that he had a vested interest in giving Moustafa (El-Deeb’s client) the death penalty two days before.
He added that the show host Mahmoud Saad was also complicit for giving El-Deeb airtime to insult the honorable judge.
El-Deeb was unavailable for comment.
In the problematic “El-Beit Beitak episode, lawyer El-Deeb said that when he investigated one of the lawyers on the plaintiff’s side who was fervently attacking Moustafa, he discovered that he was one of Qunsuah’s neighbors and that he had lied about his address in court.
El-Deeb added that when he disclosed this information, Qunsuah demanded the lawyer withdraw from the case, which he did.
The show also hosted Karam Gabr, head of the board of directors of Rose Al-Youssef magazine and newspaper, who attacked El-Deeb for of insulting the court.
“The defense team has to change this attitude or else it will reinforce the death penalty against Moustafa, said Gabr, who had also written an editorial in Rose Al Youssef magazine emphasizing the integrity of Egypt’s judiciary.
Since the death sentence was announced on May 21, Moustafa’s defense lawyers have appeared in various media outlets, revoking a publishing ban.
Even though El-Deeb was the one who demanded the publishing ban, “he is now running after the media to seek their help to set his client free, commented Gamal Eid, director of the Arabic Network For Human Rights Information (ANHRI).
Judge Ahmed Mekki, vice chairman of an Egyptian Court of Appeals, previously told Daily News Egypt that the publishing ban on the case is still active.
“The ban will last until the case is completely closed and the final verdict cannot be appealed or revoked, Mekki said, adding that newspapers and talk shows which showed parts of the lawyers’ statements or details from the sessions could be held in contempt of court and penalized.
“El-Deeb himself can be punished for commenting on the verdict in the media, he said.
