Presidential candidate Hazem Salah Abu Ismail on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the chairman of the Presidential Elections Commission (PEC) and the interior minister, demanding they prove their claim that his mother carried US citizenship. On his official presidential campaign page on Facebook, Abu Ismail said he filed a lawsuit before the State Council against the head of the PEC and the interior minister to compel the minister to prove that his mother held dual nationality. He went on to deny that his mother had ever carried US or any other citizenship. He said that he submitted his papers on 30 March, and at this time the PEC brought up the issue of his mother's dual citizenship, which was published in the media. He said there was no proof for this claim and that he “feared there was a plot by government agencies that newspapers base their information on, as these agencies were behind the news story.” Earlier, on her Facebook page, Khadiga Khairat al-Shater, daughter of the Muslim Brotherhood's presidential candidate, said, “My father [Khairat al-Shater] received proof that Sheikh Hazem Salah Abu Ismail's mother carried dual nationality, and that his candidacy papers will be rejected.” One of the requirements for Egyptian presidential candidates is that they only hold Egyptian citizenship and that both their parents and wives carry only Egyptian nationality. The presidential election is scheduled to be held on 23 and 24 May.
