CAIRO: Three of the founding members of the Egyptian Democratic Academy (EDA) summoned by the military prosecution on Tuesday will be questioned about a complaint they had filed against member of the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) General Hassan El-Ruwainy, EDA’s media coordinator Esraa Abdel Fattah told Daily News Egypt Wednesday.
"We filed a complaint against General El-Ruwainy for his remarks against the academy and other civil society organizations," confirmed Abdel-Fattah, denying speculations that the members were summoned for a probe into accusations of receiving foreign funding illegally.
Meanwhile, 70-year-old retired army officer Hassan Bahgat was handed down a six-month suspended prison sentence by a military court for chanting anti-SCAF slogans in Tahrir Square on Aug. 6.
Gamal Eid, head of the Arabic Network for Human Rights information (ANHRI), told DNE Wednesday that ANHRI represented Bahgat until he was released. Eid, however, could not confirm that Bahgat is a journalist, as he was described in other news reports.
Ali Atef, the lawyer who handled Bahgat’s case, told DNE that Bahgat used to be brigadier general under late president Gamal Abdel-Nasser, but received a 15-year prison sentence for allegedly plotting to assassinate Nasser.
"But he received amnesty from late president Anwar El-Sadat after spending four years in jail," Atef added.
On the other hand, one of the administrators of "I am Sorry Mr. President" Facebook page, dedicated to ousted president Hosni Mubarak, was summoned by military prosecution as a witness against a group of protesters arrested by military police during Abbaseya clashes that left one protesters, Mohamed Mohsen, dead and 300 others injured.
"The admin was summoned as an eyewitness and left military prosecution as soon as prosecution heard the testimony," said the Facebook page.
