Hassan al-Naggar, head of the Judges Club in Zagazig, accused Egypt's justice minister of "intimidating" judges who criticize the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.
Justice Minister Mohamed al-Guindi had referred Naggar, and Alaa Shawqi, head of the Giza Criminal Court, and Ashraf Nada, head of the Beni Suef Court of Appeal, to interrogations for giving statements to Al Jazeera saying civilian courts should handle crimes of thuggery, not military ones.
Judicial sources accused the three judges of insulting the military and the military judiciary.
In statements to Al-Masry Al-Youm, Naggar described the matter as a “first precedent of its kind in the history of the judiciary, when a judge is summoned for interrogation over an opinion he has expressed.”
He said his statements to Al Jazeera were "normal," adding that he told the network that civilians should be tried before a civilian court rather than a military one because justice – not speed – is what counts.
Naggar said he will request compensation for the moral damages he has incurred.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
