Attorney General Hisham Barakat ordered Sunday to list former Muslim Brotherhood group’s Supreme Guide Mohamed Badie and a number of the banned-group’s leaders as terrorist per a February anti-terrorism decree Youm7 reported.
Other Brotherhood leaders listed along with Badie are Khairat al-Shater, Mohamed el-Beltagy, Essam el-Erian, Mahmoud Ezzat, Osama Yassin and Mohamed Mahdi Akef.
The listed Brotherhood leaders are currently standing trials in multiple cases, mostly over inciting violence, breaking into police stations, killing and terrorism-related charges.
The terrorist entities decree was published on Feb. 24; it defines a terrorist as any entity, organization, group, individual, or cell that participates inside or outside Egypt in a “terrorist act” against the people, environment, antiquities, transportation system, public and governmental entities, judiciary system, or diplomatic or consular staff.
Since it was drafted, the decree was criticized by non-governmental organizations, especially human rights groups, which deemed the law threatens and restricts civil society work.
According to the decree, the General Prosecution has right to ask a court to label suspects terrorists in two lists: one for terrorist entities and the other for individuals after final verdicts.
Moreover, a defendant who is standing investigations or trial could also be named a terrorist by the prosecution, according to the decree.
Egypt designed the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group in December 2013 following a bomb attack on the Dakahlia Security Directorate building in which 15 people killed and dozens were injured.
