The family of an Egyptian lawyer detained in Saudi Arabia has hired a Saudi law firm to defend him, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Amr Roshdy said Monday.

Ahmed al-Gizawy has been detained since April on charges of smuggling drugs into the kingdom. His trial, alongside another Egyptian defendant named Islam Bakr, is scheduled to start Wednesday.

Roshdy said Egyptian General Consul to Jeddah Ali al-Esheiry has been spoken about legal expenses with Gizawy’s wife, Shahinda Fathy. The consulate is also coordinating with the firm on legal procedures, and Roshdy said the consulate’s legal adviser would attend all the case sessions.

Egyptian embassies and consulates don’t have the financial allocations or legal power necessary to hire lawyers for Egyptians abroad, Roshdy said, adding that such a situation could be remedied by passing a law that would establish and fund an authority for such a purpose.

Roshdy also urged syndicates and the authorities to help the family with legal expenses.

Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm