** Please note that Bikyamasr.com cannot independently verify the prosecution's statements given to al-Shorouk newspaper and are waiting for more details to come forward. CAIRO: Prominent Egyptian blogger and activist Alaa Abdel Fattah was transferred from a military court to a security court on Monday, but now faces additional charges of terrorism and premeditated murder. According to the prosecution, Fattah is being charged with “murder with the intent to carry out a terrorist act,” bringing the total charges against the popular blogger to 12 in total. The prosecution has accused Fattah with the “intent of committing crimes, assaulting security personnel and using force against them.” He is also charged with attempting to break into governmental buildings using force, assaulting employees assigned to public service and assaulting others resulting in the death of soldier, al-Shorouk newspaper reported. In addition, the list of charges also includes “stealing weapons, possession of an illegal and unlicensed firearm and vandalizing public property purposefully to execute a terrorist act.” Prosecutors also say he was in “possession of tools used in assaulting people in activities that violate public safety and order.” Fattah has denied all charges, saying that he was “not part” of the Maspero events – the October 9 incident in front of Egypt's state TV building where 27 Coptic Christian activists were killed by the army – arguing he arrived around 9 PM that night to the scene. This was hours after the initial violence began at around 6 PM. The prosecution's case rests on two witnesses, al-Aziz Fahmy, a member of Egypt Freedom Party, and journalist Hanan Khawasik. Fahmy claims he saw Fattah and a number of his friends, including blogger Wael Abbas and Baha'a Sabr “beat a military soldier, steal his weapon and then Fattah took the weapon and threw it into the Nile before getting into a taxi.” Fattah denied the testimony, saying that Abbas was in Tunisia at the time, attending a bloggers conference. The journalist said Fattah stole a rifle from a military vehicle on the nearby 6th of October Bridge, accompanied by two other men. Fattah said that the two testimonies are conflicting as he was described doing two different things. He added that the journalist described a truck not an armed vehicle. Fattah, a prominent Egyptian blogger, has been vocal in his stance against Egypt's military rulers. He was summoned to an Egyptian military court for questioning on October 31, weeks after the incident. Egypt's interim military rulers, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), dismissing any accountability for the violence that took place at Maspero, alleged that Alaa had stolen weapons from soldiers and assaulted officers on the night of the protest. Activists and eyewitnesses came forward to condemn the testimony as false. Fattah defiantly refused to stand testimony in front of the court on the day of his initial summoning, denying the authority of Egypt's controversial military courts and refusing to acknowledge the fabricated charges against him. The military authorities subsequently detained him for a 15-day period of investigations. The sentencing was renewed again on November 13. When he was transferred to a civilian court on November 28, it was renewed again. The detention of the blogger has been a particular point of contention for those angry with the nation's military rulers. Egypt's military courts are notorious for their harsh sentencing and lack of proper legal proceedings. An Egyptian rights group estimates that 12,000 Egyptian civilians have been tried and sentenced in these courts since the SCAF took power in February. The defendants often appear before military judges by the dozen, and are not granted access to legal council or witness testimony. Verdicts of the courts may not be appealed, and the trials often take place in private. Meanwhile, international human rights groups have chimed in to demand the immediate release of the detained blogger. “Instead of identifying which members of the military were driving the military vehicles that crushed 13 Coptic protesters, the military prosecutor is going after the activists who organized the march,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “Abdel Fattah's detention is a blatant effort to target one of the most vocal critics of the military. The prosecutor's acts further entrench military impunity by failing to build public confidence that there will be a transparent investigation of those responsible for the deaths,” she continued. ** Manar Ammar contributed to this report. BM
