Prosecutor orders detention of 35 for Islamic State affiliations

Prosecutor General Hesham Barakat ordered the detention of 35 suspects for 15 days, accusing them of affiliation with the banned Muslim Brotherhood group and other terrorist organizations, including the Islamic State, privately owned Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper reported on Sunday.

Investigations are ongoing in Damietta, Sharqiya and Ismailia regarding the involvement of the suspects, who were allegedly part of four terrorist cells.

According to Al-Masry Al-Youm, the defendants confessed that they traveled to Syria via Turkey as businessmen, where the newspaper asserted that they received training, before returning to Egypt to carry out attacks against security personnel and state facilities.

Investigations indicate that the accused were in contact with alleged terrorist Mahmoud Ismail, who was reportedly in charge of recruiting Brotherhood-affiliated citizens to join the Islamic State. A representative in Egypt allegedly facilitated the forging of information in their passports and helped them leave via Turkey to Syria, with the help of an Islamic State member in Turkey, Al-Masry Al-Youm added.

Five of the suspects arrested in Damietta reportedly said they were recruited through religious classes preaching jihad.

Barakat called for the arrests from Geneva, where he is currently attending the third Arab Forum to Refund Contraband.

Since the ousting of former President Mohamed Morsi, there have been an increasing number of attacks against security forces and facilities. Around 33 military personnel died in a deadly bombing at a checkpoint near Sheikh Zuwayed on October 24.

Egypt is now openly part of the US-sponsored alliance against the Islamic State.