By Joseph Mayton
Bikya Masr
"CAIRO: At least 40 NGO workers in Egypt have been referred to a Cairo criminal court and have been charged with “illegal funding of a civil society organization,” judicial sources told Bikyamasr.com on Sunday afternoon.
Among those sent are 19 Americans, 5 Serbians, two Germans, three Arabs and the remaining Egyptians. Sam LaHood, the son of US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who has made headlines recently after being barred from leaving Egypt, was among those charged.
The spat over American citizens being barred from leaving Egypt has left a diplomatic row between the military junta here in Egypt and the American government.
A senior State Department official said Sunday that a “handful of US citizens have opted to stay in the embassy compound in Cairo while awaiting permission to depart Egypt.”
The official, who was not allowed to discuss the matter on the record, would not say whether Sam LaHood, the son of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, was among those at the embassy.
LaHood said last week that he fears he could be jailed for up to five years after being barred from leaving the country earlier this month.
LaHood and a number of other Americans were banned from leaving Egypt little over a week ago.
The younger LaHood told Fox News via telephone last Friday that an Egyptian judge claims he, along with the other Americans stopped, worked for an unregistered non-governmental organization and took a salary.
“We’re kind of expecting the worst,” LaHood said.....
According to the statement from the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), the employees of the organizations are now under investigation by the public prosecutor.
Additionally, with regards to the ACIJP office at least, “authorities restricted access to the entire building, preventing people from entering or exiting the building,” during the raid.
CIHRS said that the move is part of the ruling military junta’s “campaign” against civil society and human rights groups in Egypt. In recent months, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) has accused local NGOs of receiving money from abroad, and have argued to the public that the recent unrest in the country is by “foreign hands.”...."
Bikya Masr
"CAIRO: At least 40 NGO workers in Egypt have been referred to a Cairo criminal court and have been charged with “illegal funding of a civil society organization,” judicial sources told Bikyamasr.com on Sunday afternoon.
Among those sent are 19 Americans, 5 Serbians, two Germans, three Arabs and the remaining Egyptians. Sam LaHood, the son of US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who has made headlines recently after being barred from leaving Egypt, was among those charged.
The spat over American citizens being barred from leaving Egypt has left a diplomatic row between the military junta here in Egypt and the American government.
A senior State Department official said Sunday that a “handful of US citizens have opted to stay in the embassy compound in Cairo while awaiting permission to depart Egypt.”
The official, who was not allowed to discuss the matter on the record, would not say whether Sam LaHood, the son of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, was among those at the embassy.
LaHood said last week that he fears he could be jailed for up to five years after being barred from leaving the country earlier this month.
LaHood and a number of other Americans were banned from leaving Egypt little over a week ago.
The younger LaHood told Fox News via telephone last Friday that an Egyptian judge claims he, along with the other Americans stopped, worked for an unregistered non-governmental organization and took a salary.
“We’re kind of expecting the worst,” LaHood said.....
According to the statement from the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS), the employees of the organizations are now under investigation by the public prosecutor.
Additionally, with regards to the ACIJP office at least, “authorities restricted access to the entire building, preventing people from entering or exiting the building,” during the raid.
CIHRS said that the move is part of the ruling military junta’s “campaign” against civil society and human rights groups in Egypt. In recent months, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) has accused local NGOs of receiving money from abroad, and have argued to the public that the recent unrest in the country is by “foreign hands.”...."
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