CAIRO-
An Egyptian court on Tuesday banned all activities of Hamas in Egypt in a further sign that Cairo’s military-backed government aims to squeeze the Palestinian Islamist group that rules neighboring Gaza, regarding it as a security threat.
Hamas is an offshoot of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, which has been declared a terrorist group by the authorities and subjected to systematic repression since the army ousted one of its leaders, Mohamed Mursi, from the presidency last July.
“The court has ordered the banning of Hamas work and activities in Egypt,” the judge, who asked to remain anonymous, told a foreign news agency.
When in power Mursi gave red-carpet treatment to Hamas, angering many secular and liberal Egyptians who saw this as part of a creeping Islamist takeover following the pro-democracy uprising of 2011.
The military-buttressed authorities now classify Hamas as a significant security risk, accusing the group of supporting an Islamist insurgency that has spread quickly since Mursi’s downfall, allegations it denies.
Security officials had told Reuters in January that after crushing the Muslim Brotherhood at home, military rulers planned steps to undermine Hamas.
The court also ordered the closure of Hamas offices in Egypt, one of the judges overseeing the case told Reuters. The judge stopped short of declaring Hamas a terrorist group, saying the court did not have the jurisdiction to do so.
Hamas condemned the ruling.
“The decision harms the image of Egypt and its role towards the Palestinian cause. It reflects a form of standing against Palestinian resistance (to Israel),” said Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for the Gaza-based militant organization.
During Mursi’s year in power, Hamas held secretive internal elections in Egypt in 2012. A top Hamas official, Musa Abu Marzouk, lives in Cairo and may now be at risk of arrest in the wake of the court decision.
The case against Hamas was filed by a group of Egyptian lawyers after Mursi’s removal last year asking for it to be outlawed in Egypt and designated a terrorist organization.