Egypt’s Emergency State Security Court on Monday adjourned the trial of a Jordanian citizen accused of spying for Israel after his defense team requested more time to review material and provide documents related to the case. The trial is slated to reconvene on Thursday.
Egyptian security forces arrested telecommunications engineer Bashar Ibrahim Abu Zeid in March. He is alleged to have entered Egypt after the 25 January uprising to work as an agent for the Mossad.
Another man, Ofer Herari, is accused of being responsible for overseeing Abu Zeid's activities in Egypt. He is to be tried in absentia, having already fled Egypt.
On Monday, the court held a five minute closed session after which Head of the Court Judge Makram Awad adjourned the trial.
Prior to the hearing, the judge ordered a closed session and banned media representatives from attending.
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The defense team requested the prosecution’s evidence as well as the formation of a committee of Supreme State Security Prosecution members to check and translate e-mail messages exchanged between Abu Zeid and Herari so as to see if they contained any evidence incriminating the defendant.
The court responded to the defense’s requests and postponed the trial to Thursday.
According to Egyptian intelligence services, Abu Zeid and Herari agreed to intercept international calls coming into Egypt and transfer them to Israel, thereby allowing Israeli security services to eavesdrop on calls related to Egypt's national security.
Investigators also claim that Herari charged Abu Zeid with searching for Egyptian intelligence agents working in the field of telecommunications.
Abu Zeid was also charged with collecting data on certain employees, especially those working with Egyptian mobile operators and who travel abroad for work, with the aim of recruiting suitable candidates to work for the Mossad.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
