Prosecutor General Nabil Sadek ordered the referral of 30 defendants to the State Security Criminal Court on terror-related charges. The defendants are accused of forming a terrorist group embracing the ideas of the Islamic State group (IS) and financing it with money, weapons, and explosives, as well as providing its members with information and safe havens. The State Security Prosecution conducted investigations into the case and decided earlier to arrest the accused before they were able to target a church in Asafra, Alexandria. According to investigations, the group was planning to target churches, Coptic citizens, and vital buildings, and they received training in camps affiliated with IS in Syria and Libya. In November 2017, the prosecutor general also referred 10 defendants to the State Security Criminal Court for the same charges, in addition to attempts of murdering Christian citizens, as well as theft of a Christian-owned shop, a motorcycle, and weapons possessed by police. During the recent period, a number of terror attacks were carried out against Copts and security personnel, resulting in the deaths of dozens of victims. Also, parliament has applied amendments to laws related to terrorism-related cases and started, a few months ago, discussing amendments to the Criminal Procedures Law for more swift and fair justice.
