20 Egyptians sentenced as MB is dismantled in Emirates

The Emirati Union Supreme Court ordered the dismantling of the Muslim Brotherhood organization in the Emirates on Tuesday, sentencing 30 of its members to a maximum of 5 years in prison, including 20 Egyptians.

Thirty members of the Brotherhood have been accused of establishing offices without obtaining official permission, stealing photos and documents containing state security information, and sharing these documents among themselves, according to Agence France-Press.

Six Egyptian defendants were sentenced in absentia after they managed to flee the country before the trial, while the others will be deported from the Emirates after serving their sentences, which are final and cannot be appealed.

The court also ordered the closing of all Brotherhood offices in the country and the confiscation of equipment found there, according to Reuters.

A family member of one of the defendants told Reuters the accused have denied all accusations against them, adding that they were subjected to physical abuse and forced to sign incriminating confessions in custody while awaiting the trial.

Emirates officials have denied torture allegations, sighting medical tests ordered by the court for some of the defendants.

Meanwhile, an Amnesty International report released Monday said at least three of the defendants were “prisoners of conscience,” calling on the UAE to “stop the downward cycle of unfair political trials.”

The case comes after a long history of tension between the Emirati government and the Brotherhood both inside the country and overseas.

Gulf States, particularly Saudi Arabia and the UAE, have been cracking down on supporters of the Brotherhood, fearing a scenario similar to Egypt’s, in which the Brotherhood might destabilize their regimes.

Following former President Mohamed Morsi’s ouster, the UAE announced a massive aid program of US$4 billion to help support Egyptian infrastructure.

Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan, chief of the Dubai police force, has frequently waged Twitter wars against Brotherhood supporters. He recently described “the Brotherhood’s violent and criminal acts” in Egypt as a result of an “inferiority complex,” asking “people in charge of prisons in the Arab world to treat Brotherhood members with sedatives to help cure them from the psychological complexes they’ve developed.”