The trial of 43 suspects who work for foreign NGOs, including 19 Americans, opened in Cairo Criminal Court on Sunday.
The suspects face charges of operating without the necessary permits, receiving foreign funds and training parties to engage in political activity in violation of the law.
Sources close to some of the suspects said most of the American citizens implicated in the case will not be present at the session. Lawyers will attend on their behalf and they will plead not guilty, they said.
Judicial sources said the judge presiding over the case has the right to either keep the suspects in detention or release them, pending investigations.
Negad al-Boraie, head of the defense team for the suspects, said the lawyers have not yet received the case file and will ask for the trial to be postponed for time to review it. They said they will request the testimonies from Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Fayza Abouelnaga, three ambassadors and the minister of social affairs.
The lawyers said their clients are in Egypt and that several of them have decided not to attend the session fearing a court decision to imprison them pending investigations.
Eaarlier government investigations found that suspects had been working at five unlicensed NGOs, four of which are American.
The report from the investigation alleges that the organizations received large amounts of unlicensed cash. It says the International Republican Institute received US$22 million, the National Democratic Institute US$18 million and Freedom House US$5 million.
The recent government initiative scrutinizing the operation of foreign-funded NGOs in Egypt has led to tensions with the US, and has prompted some US Congress members to call for suspending annual US military aid to Egypt, which is estimated at US$1.3 billion.
Abouelnaga is expected to give a statement before Parliament on Sunday to clarify the administration of US aid to Egypt after demands from the Parliament that she discuss the matter.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
