Schneider Electric Expands Youth Partnership with Enactus to Drive Inclusive Energy Transition in Egypt    China's Jiangsu Zhengyong to build $85m factory in Egypt's Ain Sokhna: SCZONE    Egyptian pound ticks up vs. US dollar at Thursday's close    Egypt condemns Israeli plan to build 3,400 settler homes in West Bank    Fitch Ratings: ASEAN Islamic finance set to surpass $1t by 2026-end    Egypt, Namibia explore closer pharmaceutical cooperation    Egypt, China ink $1bn agreement for Sailun tire plant in SCZONE    Renowned Egyptian novelist Sonallah Ibrahim dies at 88    Egypt's Electricity Minister discusses progress on Greece power link    Egypt's FM discusses Gaza, bilateral ties in calls with Saudi, South African counterparts    Egypt prepares to tackle seasonal air pollution in Nile Delta    27 Western countries issue joint call for unimpeded aid access to Gaza    Egyptian, Ugandan Presidents open business forum to boost trade    Al-Sisi says any party thinking Egypt will neglect water rights is 'completely mistaken'    Egypt's Sisi warns against unilateral Nile measures, reaffirms Egypt's water security stance    Egypt's Sisi, Uganda's Museveni discuss boosting ties    Egypt, Colombia discuss medical support for Palestinians injured in Gaza    Australia to recognise Palestinian state in September, New Zealand to decide    Egypt, Huawei explore healthcare digital transformation cooperation    Global matcha market to surpass $7bn by 2030: Nutrition expert    Egypt's Sisi, Sudan's Idris discuss strategic ties, stability    Egypt's govt. issues licensing controls for used cooking oil activities    Egypt to inaugurate Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November    Egypt, Uganda strengthen water cooperation, address Nile governance    Egypt's Sisi: Egypt is gateway for aid to Gaza, not displacement    Korean Cultural Centre in Cairo launches folk painting workshop    Greco-Roman rock-cut tombs unearthed in Egypt's Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Egypt's minister of interior 'listens carefully' to former Jihad leader
Published in Ahram Online on 19 - 06 - 2011

The man who spent 30 years in jail for the assassination of former president Anwar Sadat talks to Ahram Online about his historic meeting with the interior minister and the changes as he sees them in Egypt
Aboud El-Zomor, one of the founders of Islamic Jihad in the 1970s, told Ahram Online that he believes that the new Ministry of Interior leadership is serious about opening a new page with the Egyptian people in the post Mubarak era. El-Zomor was released from prison last March after serving 30 years behind bars for his role in the assassination of late president Anwar Sadat in 1981.
Last Thursday, El-Zomor met with Mansour El-Eissawi, Egypt's minister of interior, to discuss how to ensure the full participation of all political forces in the electoral process, among other issues. He said that El-Eissawi listened carefully during the meeting to his points of view and demands, and that he believes that the minister is serious about changing the role and conduct of the Police.
The meeting between Aboud El-Zomor and Mansour El-Eissawi was a first of its kind between a leading Islamist figure who spent years in Mubarak's jails and the top official of a ministry which had conducted widespread imprisonment and torture of tens of thousands of El-Zomor's comrades in the not too distant past.
El-Zomor said that one of the issues he discussed with the minister was the demand for the repatriation of Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, a prominent leader of El Jamaa El Islamiya (the mother organisation of Islamic Jihad) from the United States.
Abdel Rahman is serving a life sentence in the United States for his alleged role in the 1994 bombing of the World Trade Center building in New York City.His case has been a rallying point for thousands of his supporters and other Islamists in Egypt for years. In recent days, some of his supporters have picketed outside of the United States embassy in Cairo to demand the release of the ailing 73-year-old.
“Sheikh Omar has suffered greatly because of harsh conditions of imprisonment for 18 years. He is not allowed to even see his own family in person,” said El-Zomor.
El-Zomor added that he also demanded from El-Eissawi that he personally ensures that the Ministry of Interior finally honours previous court rulings that have mandated financial compensation for numerous members of El Jamaa El Islamiya who languished in prison cells for over two decades in dubious cases. The Ministry of Interior, in its part, had expressed in recent days its willingness to pay out as much as $73 millionto settle many such cases.
The meeting was concluded by El-Zomor's request that the government of Prime Minister Essam Sharaf issue a general pardon for all members of El Jamaa El Islamiya who were forced into exile because of their opposition to the regime of ousted president Mubarak. “The government should at least order new trials for those patriots in order to allow them to finally return to their beloved country,” he said.
Aside from the meeting with the minister, El-Zomor stressed his sense of excitement at the formation of the National Security Apparatus to replace the infamous, dismantled State Security Intelligence, which had repressed and tortured him and thousands more during the Mubarak era. “I feel that the newly formed Security Apparatus contains people who want to sincerely serve the country not those in power like the ones we used to see,” he told Ahram Online.
The meeting between El-Zomor and El-Eissawi highlights how the government of Prime Minister Sharaf is searching for ways to accommodate Islamist groups and individuals who once espoused armed struggle against the state as a means for change but are now yearning to engage politically in the post Mubarak era.


Clic here to read the story from its source.