The Supreme Judiciary Council’s disciplinary board issued a final decision on Monday that forced 15 judges into retirement over charges of having ties with the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
Ten of the judges, who were accused of forming and belonging to the “Judges for Egypt” movement that supported former president Mohamed Morsi and the Brotherhood government, were initially forced to retire in March 2016 while the five others were acquitted.
An appeal by the general prosecution against the acquittal of the five was accepted by the disciplinary board as it rejected the appeals of the convicted ten judges.
The “Judges for Egypt” movement, formed while Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) was in power, opposed the military takeover that saw the ouster of Morsi.
The movement announced in a statement read, during the days of the Rabaa Al-Adaweya sit-in, that “what happened on 3 July [2013] is a military coup and we demand that the Egyptian people support the constitutional legitimacy”.
Another 55 judges were forced into retirement in March 2016 for signing a statement of support for former president Mohamed Morsi and the Brotherhood.
The disciplinary board postponed the ruling in the 55 judges’ appeals case to 28 March.
The law regulating judicial authorities stipulates that any judge who is referred to a disciplinary committee must stand trial, with the possibility of being suspended from judicial duties.
