Egypt's govt appeals against decision to overturn freeze on Aboutrika's assets

Sunday 24-07-2016 02:27 PM

Renowned Egyptian football player Mohamed Aboutrika. Reuters

CAIRO, Jul 24 (Aswat Masriya) – Egypt's State Lawsuits Authority has appealed on Sunday against a court's ruling that canceled the decision to seize renowned Egyptian footballer Mohamed Aboutrika’s assets.

In June, Egypt’s administrative court overturned a decision made by a  government committee to seize Trika's assets. However, the State Lawsuits Authority - the body representing the government in legal cases - filed an appeal calling for the overturning of the court decision.

The assets of a tourism company co-founded by Trika was confiscated in May 2015 by a government committee tasked to manage the funds of the Muslim Brotherhood for affiliation with the banned group.

The committee said in a statement published at the time that the company Ashab Tours was co-established by a "leading Muslim Brotherhood" figure. The company's manager, Mohamed al-Qadi is a "leading Muslim Brotherhood figure" who is currently in custody and accused of committing anti-state hostilities and using the company's assets to fund "terrorist operations", the statement added.

Aboutrika had previously challenged the committee’s decision to confiscate his assets; however, the committee had rejected his challenge. The football player then resorted to the administrative court to appeal the decision.

In its consultative report, a subsidiary of the State Council recommended that the administrative court accept Aboutrika’s appeal, adding that the committee to manage the funds of the Brotherhood had infringed Aboutrika’s property rights and violated his constitutional rights.

The committee was formed following a September 2013 court ruling which banned the Brotherhood's activities in the country. The ruling stipulated banning activities of any association that branches from the Brotherhood, that was founded by Brotherhood funds or that receives any form of support from the Brotherhood.

Egypt listed the Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation in December 2013 and insists it is behind the stringent wave of militancy which has targeted security personnel since the ouster of former Islamist President Mohamed Mursi.

The Brotherhood continuously denies the accusations.

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