As the trial of 23 Egyptians and three Britons charged with attempting to overthrow the government began Sunday at a Cairo Supreme State Security Court, all defendants pleaded innocent. Jailan Halawi reports Click to view caption The trial of 23 Egyptians and three Britons charged with belonging to the banned organisation Hizb Al-Tahrir Al-Islami, the Islamic Liberation Party, began on Sunday at a State Security Court in downtown Cairo. The suspects are accused of joining a secret illegal group that aims to obstruct the legal system and undermine state institutions. Defendants are also charged with attempting to revive the activities of a banned group whose activities contravene the constitution. In the caged dock, defendants wore the white prison uniforms and most of them held copies of the Qur'an as they chanted, "There is no god but God," while their families stood by, sobbing at the sight of their loved ones behind bars. Although the courtroom was spacious, there was barely room to move as reporters and correspondents jockeyed for interviews with the suspected militants. Before the opening session started, an Egyptian defendant, who spoke to Al-Ahram Weekly on condition of anonymity, denied belonging to any group, but said that as a devout Muslim he believed in the necessity of re-establishing the Islamic Caliphate. "All those detained are peaceful Muslims whose only crime is worshipping God; we are not accused of carrying out any violent acts or even attempting them. They [the authorities] cannot just persecute us for our beliefs; this is unfair," he complained. Speaking to reporters, the three Britons, Ian Malcolm Nisbett, Maajid Nawaz, and Reza Pankhurst, did not deny that they belonged to the party in the United Kingdom -- the organisation is lawful in the UK -- but were adamant that they were not involved in any political activity in Egypt. Speaking to the Weekly, Reza's mother criticised the case, describing it as an "insult". "How can the Egyptian government accuse them [the defendants] of attempting to overthrow the regime by speech and writing? This indicates a fragile and vulnerable system whose security is threatened by leaflets and young people's beliefs. Prosecutors did not say they [the Britons] came here to carry out military actions." The session began with presiding judge Ahmed El-Ashmawi reading out the names of the defendants, only to discover that most of them had been incorrectly recorded. El-Ashmawi reprimanded the court secretary, saying that any inaccuracy in registering the names was "very serious". Addressing the court, prosecutor Waleed El- Minsahwi said that all 26 defendants, one of whom is at large, were working from 2000 until the time of their arrest in April 2002 to revive the Islamic Liberation Party. Thus, the defendants, said the prosecutor, tried to establish an illegal group in various Islamic countries with the aim of reviving the Islamic Caliphate. In doing so, El-Minshawi said, they attempted to promote their ideas as well as recruit new members. The defendants are also charged with the possession of anti-government literature. In a routine procedure, the judge read the charges to each suspect. They all pleaded innocent, including the three Britons for whom El- Ashmawi translated the charges. By the time the charges were read, it was noon and one of the defendants called for a break to pray. El-Ashmawi, in response, ordered a brief recess. Head of the defence team, well-known Islamist lawyer Montasser El-Zayyat, requested that the defendants be examined by a forensic doctor. El- Zayyat alleged that "suspects were tortured to make certain confessions". El-Zayyat further requested that books and printed material seized at the time of the defendants' arrest be referred to the Centre of Islamic Research, affiliated with Al-Azhar, to rule whether they contradict Islamic jurisprudence. The books in question are Al-Nizam Al-Iqtisadi fil-Islam (The Economic System in Islam) and Al-Khilafa Al-Islamiya (The Islamic Caliphate). One of the defence lawyers said that both books are on the curriculum at the Centre for Islamic Studies which is affiliated with the Ministry of Higher Education. El-Zayyat said the books were on sale to the general public at the annual Cairo International Book Fair, and requested that the court obtain verification in this respect from the General Egyptian Book Organisation. The Islamic Liberation Party was founded in Egypt in 1974 by two Palestinians, Salem Rahhal and Saleh Serrya -- only to be crushed by Egyptian authorities that same year after being blamed for an attempted coup d'état known as "the incident of the Technical Military Academy", in which armed militants attacked the Cairo-based academy. Defendants speaking to reporters from the dock, said they had been tortured while undergoing interrogation. Some said that electrical shocks were administered to them, that they were beaten while naked and the guards made threatening remarks about the defendants' wives. In a statement issued on Friday 18 October, the London-based human rights group Amnesty International said it was concerned about allegations that the men had been tortured after their April arrest. Amnesty said the State Security Court trial violated international standards for fair trials, noting that the rulings cannot be appealed, but only be overturned by the president. Defendants could face up to 15 years in prison if found guilty. On Monday, the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights (EOHR) issued a statement also expressing concern that the men were being tried by a State Security Court. At the end of the session, the judge accepted most of the defence's requests and adjourned the trial until Tuesday 28 October.
