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Shenouda Ashraf Sobhy Zekry

Egyptian man with Star of David tattoo charged with spying for Israel

Shenouda Ashraf Sobhy Zekry contacted Israelis on Facebook, asked about illegally immigrating to Israel.

The Egyptian man who was arrested for his Israeli ties was charged on Monday with spying for Israel.

 

Shenouda Ashraf Sobhy Zekry, 24, was also charged with accepting money from a foreign country to commit an act that harms Egypt's national interests, and contacting a foreign country to obtain state secrets. He was also charged with falsifying an official document and possessing ammunition without the proper permits.

 

 

Zekry was arrested on Sunday in the city of Suhaj in southern Egypt for corresponding with an Israeli citizen on Facebook, liking Israeli pages belonging to the Mossad and the IDF Spokesman on the social media network, criticizing Egypt and attempting to visit Israel via South Sudan. He also has a Star of David tattoo on his arm.

 

Zekry's Star of David tattoo
Zekry's Star of David tattoo

 

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Police who searched his home found the ammunition, as well as a Hebrew-Arabic dictionary, a visa for South Sudan, and business cards for the South Sudanese embassy in Egypt and for an Egyptian travel agency in Suhaj.

 

The Hebrew-Arabic dictionary found in Zekry's apartment
The Hebrew-Arabic dictionary found in Zekry's apartment

 

The Hebrew-Arabic dictionary found in Zekry's apartment
The Hebrew-Arabic dictionary found in Zekry's apartment

 

Local authorities said they found photos of soldiers, officers and Israeli citizens waving Israeli flags on Zekry's computer.

 

According to media reports, Zekry worked as a driver in the Sharm el-Sheikh area in the southern Sinai Peninsula in 2011, where he met many Israeli. This, according to the report, made him consider moving to Israel.

 

Zekry also met an Israeli woman called "Nikola", with whom he used to meet. Nikola reportedly introduced Zekry to an IDF officer. Zekry's father also said that his son told him about his acquaintance with the young Israeli woman.

 

Zekry admitted to the charges attributed to him in his investigation, and said he was willing to accept the death penalty. He claimed he does not regret his actions because he loves Israel and detests Egypt.

 

The investigation also found that he was trying to find out in his encounters in Sharm el-Sheikh whether he could illegally immigrate to Israel. He also reportedly arrived at the Israeli embassy in Cairo in an attempt to get a visa to the country, but was unsuccessful.

 

The Egyptian paper al-Youm al-Sabaa published photos of the Hebrew-Arabic dictionary that Zekry said he used in order to contact Israelis on Facebook.

 

The Egyptian Attorney-General decided to extend Zekry's remand in 15 days in order to continue investigation.

 


פרסום ראשון: 03.18.14, 00:18
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