CAIRO: The alleged Israeli spy ring case is slated to go to trial in front of the Emergency State Security Supreme Court on Jan. 15 after it had been referred by the Cairo Appeals Court, local media reported Monday. Last week Egypt announced the capture of an Egyptian member of a Mossad-run spy ring — Tarek Abdel-Razek Hussain Hassan, a 37-year-old import-export trader. Idi Moshe and Joseph Dimor, two Israelis, were charged in absentia. The maximum sentence Hassan could receive is life imprisonment. The three defendants face charges of spying for Israel and harming Egypt's national interests. Hassan allegedly attempted to recruit spies in Syria and Lebanon, which could have endangered Egypt's relations with the two countries, according to State Security Prosecutor Hisham Badawi. According to reports, State Security investigators are wrapping up their investigations. A judicial source told Al-Shorouk newspaper that there were no Egyptians involved in the spy ring other than Hassan, refuting reports made by other media outlets that the Israeli handlers had informed Hassan that they had recruited another Egyptian with the alias “Al-Ustaz” (master, or teacher). Israel has remained silent since the announcement of the case, and President Hosni Mubarak has recently criticized Israel for its dealings with the Palestinian Authority regarding their peace negotiations — a process that is virtually at a complete standstill. Badawi also accused Hassan of attempting to recruit the editor-in-chief of a Lebanese newspaper that has ties to Hezbollah and Syria. It has been reported that before the announcement of Hassan's arrest, Egypt had passed on information to Syria regarding a mole within its security forces. The mole was hung last month.
