An Egyptian military court sentenced 16 people to jail for establishing an illegal telecom network enabling phone calls via Israel. Local media reported on Wednesday that an Israeli and two Palestinians were among those sentenced to 15 years in jail for the network.
The state-owned daily Al-Akhbar said that two Egyptians, Ahmed Metwalli and Ahmed al-Badri, were jailed for 15 years, while the Israeli and Palestinians were sentenced in absentia.
Terms ranging from four months to one year were handed to 11 people while 11 others were acquitted, the newspaper reported.
The group is said to have set up a telecommunication network that allowed callers to make unauthorized international calls through Israel, costing the state-owned Egypt Telecom some 280 million Egyptian pounds ($47 million) in losses.
Analysts feel the move is positive and is likely to hold those accountable for illegal activity.
“We are definitely watching the proceedings because it is important to the future of telecom market in Egypt,” said Ismail Ramadan, a securities analyst based in Cairo. “Because with so much corruption and illegal activity, there needs to be accountability and this is a good start.”
By Desmond Shephard
