Justice Minister Adel Abdel Hamid on Tuesday requested information on 73 registered civil society organizations as part of the attorney general’s investigations into the foreign funding of civil society organizations, according to an official source within the Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs. He requested the information from Nagwa Khalil, head of that ministry.

On Thursday, district attorneys backed by gun-toting Central Security Forces raided the offices of several 17 non-governmental organizations in Egypt.

The government is investigating Egyptian and international NGOs for receiving foreign funding illegally, MENA, the state-run news agency reported.

Law 84/2002 requires NGOs to get approval from the Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs before they can receive foreign funds.

The source, who requested anonymity, said the requested information includes the organizations’ registration papers, dates of registration, and the names of all those involved in their management, as well as audit reports and the inspection reports carried out by the Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs over the past five years.

The source said that the ministry is preparing reports on the organizations at the request of the Justice Ministry in line with its commitment to Article 17 of Law 84/2002 to regulate foreign funding of civil society organizations.

Aziza Youssef, head of the Central Administration for Associations at the Ministry of Insurance and Social Affairs, told Al-Masry Al-Youm that inspections of civil society organizations carried out by police forces are legal, since investigative bodies have authority to uncover all the facts.

Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm