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Facing indictment? Nasrallah
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Report: Egypt considers indicting Nasrallah

Lebanese daily reports group of Egyptian jurists drafting document that may lead to indictment of Hizbullah leader and his deputy over terror plot; sources say Cairo may ask Interpol to arrest Nasrallah, Sheikh Qassem, extradite them to Egypt

The Lebanese daily An-Nahar reported Thursday a group of Egyptian jurists have begun drafting a legal document that may lead to the indictment of Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah and his deputy Sheikh Naim Qassem for conspiring o commit a crime and planning acts of aggression and terror on Egyptian soil.

 

Egypt has accused Hizbullah of plotting terror attacks on Egyptian soil with the aim of advancing Iran's interests in the region. Authorities have detained 25 men with alleged ties to the Shiite group, and an Egyptian prosecutor's statement said 49 people are still wanted in the alleged Hizbullah plot.

 

According to Egyptian sources, the document should be completed in the coming days and be presented to "the highest authorities." Cairo will then decide whether to add Nasrallah and Qassem to the list of Hizbullah members who are facing indictment.

 

The sources said Cairo would not hesitate to issue an official arrest warrant application for the Hizbullah leaders, and may even turn Lebanese authorities and Interpol and ask that they take the necessary measures to arrest Nasrallah and Qassem and have them extradited to Egypt.

 

A senior Egyptian official told the El-Gomhuriah newspaper that the results of the investigation into the alleged Hizbullah terror plot is expected to have "dangerous and earthshaking consequences," adding that charges may be brought against senior Hizbullah and Iranian figures.

 

Meanwhile, Egyptian officials told the Al-Shuruq daily newspaper that four members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards were arrested in Egypt in December under suspicion of conspiring and attempting to smuggle arms into the Gaza Strip through underground tunnels.

 

The security sources said the four were not related to the Hizbullah cell that was recently uncovered in Egypt. According to the report, security services were ordered to hold the Iranians for the time being, but not to put them on trial.

 

The report said the Iranians entered Egypt with fake passports in August and September of 2006, claiming they were Shiites from Iraq. The sources told Al-Shuruq that the group wanted to establish a branch of the Al-Quds Forces, the special command division of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, in Egypt.

 

Sources in Cairo said that during their interrogation the four Iranians said they entered Egypt to gather intelligence and support Iraqi Shiites residing in the country.

 

Reuters contributed to the report 

 


פרסום ראשון: 04.16.09, 10:55
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