CAIRO - Egyptian expatriates in Spain are calling for the Spanish authorities to permit them to stage a demonstration to request the deportation of Egyptian businessman Hussein Salem, who is charged with money laundering and currently detained in Spain, just two days after the Spanish government issued a recommendation for Salem's son and daughter, Khaled and Magda, to be handed over to Egypt. "We have succeeded in getting the decision to deport Salem Son and daughter. We are asking for permission to stage mass demonstration on Monday for Salem to be deported," said Moataz Salah Eddin, the head of the Egyptian Popular Initiative to Restore Egypt's Stolen Funds in Spain. Salah Eddin added that Ibrahim Abou el-Rous, the head of the Egyptian community in Spain, has presented the authorities with a written request for the protest to be staged outside the Spanish Justice Ministry. Salem, Egyptian business tycoon, is accused of multiple charges of corruption and money laundering and he is standing trial in absentia alongside former president Hosni Mubarak and his two sons. His son and daughter are accused of money laundering 2,000 million Euros and were arrested in Spain in mid-July. Salah Eddin, a former Interpol official, pointed out that the Spanish cabinet's recommendation that Khaled and Magda be deported to Egypt would help issue a ruling to hand them over. "This recommendation will help them be deported," said Salah Eddin. The Initiative has staged one demonstration outside the Spanish Foreign Ministry to pressure the Spanish government to hand Salem over to Egypt. The Egyptian community in Spain has also filed a court case demanding the same. Salem, a confidante of ousted president Hosni Mubarak, was on the run since 3 February. He was arrested in his villa in Majorca, Spain in June 2011.
