The Supreme Military Court sentenced 16 leading members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group to prison terms ranging between three and five years. Khaled Dawoud was at Haikstep military camp where the trial was held After twice postponing the announcement of its rulings, the Supreme Military Court sentenced on Tuesday 16 leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood group to prison terms ranging between three and five years. Five defendants, charged with having leading roles in the organisation, were sentenced to five years, 11 to three years and six were acquitted. The 22 defendants were incarcerated for nearly 10 months and charged with joining a banned organisation in order to overthrow the government. Most of the arrested were university professors, and they were accused of inciting students to demonstrate against the government and seeking to recruit new members. The academics were arrested shortly after the United States launched its military campaign against Afghanistan in response to the 11 September attacks in New York and Washington. The Brotherhood, at that time, organised several peaceful anti-US protests that clearly displeased the government. After a three-month trial, the chief judge, whose name cannot be published for security reasons, set 7 April as the date to pronounce sentences. But that date came 10 days after Israel reoccupied the entire West Bank, and the country witnessed unprecedented demonstrations in support of the Palestinians, and against Israel and the United States. Sentencing was postponed until 25 May, which Brotherhood sources believed was in deference to the mood on the street. But when that date came around, and for reasons that remain unknown, the judge decided to postpone the ruling for a second time until 30 July. Tuesday's sentences were the first to be issued by a military court against Brotherhood members in almost four years, and came after months of repeated government crackdowns on the group's members. In the past three months alone, nearly 300 Brotherhood members were arrested in a number of Egyptian cities, and they all faced the same charge of seeking to incite the public against the government, said Adel Abdel-Maqsoud, a Brotherhood lawyer. Adding to the significance of the case was that the top defendant, Mahmoud Ghozlan, is considered the Brotherhood's number three man. The university professor at Zagazig University reportedly follows Mustafa Mashhour and his deputy, Mamoun El-Hodeibi, in the organisation's hierarchy. Ghozlan is alleged to be responsible for organisational and financial matters. A statement released by the Brotherhood, which is Egypt's oldest political Islamist organisation, accused the government of bowing to US pressure to crack down on Islamists after 11 September. At about the same time the defendants were arrested in November, the US decided to freeze the assets of the Italy-based, Al- Taqwa Bank, run by a prominent Brotherhood figure, Youssef Nada. "The sentences confirmed the government's policy of silencing any opposition," the Brotherhood statement said. "The sentences came after a wide campaign of arrests [of Brotherhood members] in order to silence all voices siding with Palestinians and rejecting the American policy directed against Arabs and Muslims," it added. The group said that the sentences would "only make us more adamant about our stands in support of Arab and Muslim issues, topped by the Palestinian cause". Observers believe that the government, which started its clamp-down on the organisation in 1995, was unwilling to tolerate attempts by the group to "flex its muscles" by organising several pro-Palestinian and anti-US and Israel protests in recent months. The last parliamentary elections, held two years ago, saw Brotherhood candidates -- running as independents -- win 17 seats, giving the organisation a parliamentary presence equivalent to that achieved by the country's three other major opposition parties. When by-elections were held in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria in late June, and two Brotherhood candidates were running against those of the ruling National Democratic Party, thousands of policemen were deployed in the city, and surrounded polling stations. Thus, supporters of the Brotherhood were unable to cast their ballots, and the ruling party's candidates achieved an easy victory. More than 100 members of the Brotherhood were arrested in Alexandria following clashes with police. Families of the 22 defendants were forbidden to attend Tuesday's sentencing session. Only two lawyers and a few journalists were whisked in buses to the courtroom at the Haikstep military camp to attend the short session. The defendants responded to the sentences by chanting slogans confirming their commitment to the Brotherhood and its goal of establishing an Islamic state. When the lawyers left the court and informed the relatives of the sentences, many of them collapsed and began weeping and screaming. They said the sentences were unjust and that there was no evidence to convict the defendants. "The sentences and the timing of their announcement confirm that this case is political," said Salah Salem, another Muslim Brotherhood lawyer. "They [the defendants] were imprisoned because of their beliefs and principles, and in order to satisfy the Satan America to assure it that the Egyptian government was cracking down on Islamists." Related stories: Brotherhood roundup 18 - 24 July 2002 Bothered and bewildered 7 - 13 June 2001 Bad times for the Brotherhood 4 - 10 July 2002 Solidarity struggles on 23 -29 May 2002 20 - 26 June 2002 Showdown in Alexandria 27 June - 3 July 2002 Political postponements? 20 - 26 June 2002 Brothers kept on hold 30 May - 5 June 2002 Watch this space 23 - 29 November 2000 Muslim Brotherhood profile 2000 elections
