ABU DHABI: A group of 30 Egyptians and Emiratis have been charged by the UAE authorities for allegedly setting up an illegal branch of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, a prosecutor said yesterday.
The suspects have been referred to the Gulf nation’s State Security Court, prosecutor Ahmed Al-Dhanhani said.
He accused the group of having “established and managed a branch for ... the international organization of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, without a permit.”
The founders of the branch set up an administrative structure aimed at recruiting members for the Muslim Brotherhood, strengthening its presence in the UAE and maintaining allegiance to the main party, he said.
The group also “raised money through donations, Zakat (alms), and membership fees to support” the Muslim Brotherhood, he added.
Around a dozen Egyptians, some of them doctors, engineers and university professors, belonging to the group had been arrested between November 2012 and January 2013, according to Human Rights Watch.
The detained group was also linked to a separate network of around 94 Emiratis, including 13 women, who are on trial for forming a “secret organization plotting to overthrow the regime.”
Most or all of the 94 defendants are members of Al-Islah association, which UAE authorities say is linked to the Muslim Brotherhood.
UAE charges 30 Egyptians, Emiratis over clandestine cell
