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Islamist Egyptian lawmaker jailed for entering Gaza

February 11, 2009

JERUSALEM (JTA) -- An Islamist Egyptian opposition lawmaker was sentenced to jail in Egypt for illegally crossing into Gaza.

Magdi Ahmed Hussein was arrested last month when he tried to re-enter Egypt through the Rafah crossing, according to news reports that cited anonymous judicial sources. Egyptian security services said he entered Gaza through an illegal cross-border tunnel.

Hussein, head of the Islamist Labor Party, was tried in an Egyptian military court. The decision cannot be appealed.

The party's activities were suspended in 2000, partly due to its ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, Reuters reported. The Muslim Brotherhood, a popular opposition party that has been accused of trying to topple the government, has ties to Hamas, which controls Gaza.
 

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