The Supreme State Security Criminal Court sentenced an Al-Azhar professor to 15 years in prison and a fine of LE500,000, while sentencing five others to life in prison with a LE500,000 fine each, on charges of espionage for Iran.
The computer used by the defendants was confiscated and placed under the authority of the General Intelligence.
The Al-Azhar professor defendant, Alaa Moawad attended the trial while the remaining five defendants were tried in absentia.
The accused were charged of collaborating with an official from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards between 2012 and April 2016 and providing information to him with the aim of harming Egypt’s military, political, and national interests.
They also helped the Iranian official recruit more agents to create political and military influence for Iran within Egypt.
The defendants provided reports of information on the situation of Egypt’s Shia Muslims, and dispatched a number of them to Iran for examination by Revolutionary Guards officials, to be used for espionage purposes.
They also created a website and a center to promote Shia beliefs, providing its followers with financial aid with the intention of harming the Egyptian state.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
