By Kanzy Mahmoud
Eight Muslim Brotherhood leaders being held in preventive detention were transferred Saturday morning from a lower security prison to a maximum-security prison in Tora, a high-level security source from the Ministry of Interior announced, according to Aswat Masriya.
The source added that the detainees were transferred to Tora’s Al-Akrab maximum security prison as a “precautionary measure,” due to “repairs and maintenance” at minimum security Molhaa El-Mazraa prison.
The Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) released an official statement saying that the transfer of eight Muslim Brotherhood leaders to a high-security prison is illegal under preventive detention.
According to the FJP, among those transferred were deputies to the Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood Khairat El-Shater and Rashad El-Bayoumy; former Supreme Guide Mohamed Mahdi Akef, president of the FJP Mohamed Saad Al-Katatny, lawyer of the Muslim Brotherhood Abdul Moneim Abdul Masoud and Al-Raya Party head Hazem Salah Abu Ismail.
Both El-Shater and Abu Ismail were arrested by police on 5 July on charges of inciting violence in the Moqattam and Bein El-Sarayat areas, while Abdul Masoud was charged with insulting the judiciary.
