Hazem Salah Abu Ismail

Hazem Salah Abu Ismail (Arabic: حازم صلاح أبو إسماعيل; IPA: [ħæːzem sˤɑˈlɑːħ ˈæbu ʔesmæˈʕiːl]) is an Egyptian lawyer, television preacher, and former presidential candidate.[2] He was a host on The Fadfada Show which aired on Al-Nas Channel and is the founder of the Flag Party.[3]

Hazem Salah Abou Ismail
حازم صلاح أبو إسماعيل
Born (1961-06-16) 16 June 1961
Dokki, Giza, Egypt
NationalityEgyptian
Alma materCairo University
Occupations
  • Lawyer
  • politician
  • TV preacher
Political partyFlag Party[1]

Presidential candidacy

Abu Ismail applied to be a candidate for the 2012 Egyptian presidential election. In early April 2012, he was considered one of the front-runners, and enjoyed notable displays of popular support.[2][4][5]

In foreign policy, Abu Ismail is in favor of ending the 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty and has spoken of Iran as a successful model of independence from the United States.[4] His domestic agenda includes veiling women and segregating them from men in the workplace.[6]

On 4 April 2012, the New York Times reported that according to Californian government documents Abu Ismail's deceased mother held U.S. citizenship, which would make him ineligible for the presidency under the Egyptian constitution. He has denied this, stating that she only held a green card.[7] On 5 April, the Ministry of Interior confirmed his mother's U.S. citizenship, prompting rallies by thousands of his supporters.[8] In response to a case filed by Abu Ismail, the administrative court ruled against the Interior Ministry and ordered them to pay litigation expenses and to issue the would-be candidate with a document stating that his mother never held any other citizenship since they couldn't prove otherwise. The electoral commission, whose decisions are immune from judicial review, nonetheless disqualified him on 14 April.[9]

Flag Party founder

Abu Ismail founded the Flag Party on 27 February 2013 and had reportedly been in talks to join a political alliance with the recently formed Homeland Party;[10] however, he instead formed the Nation Alliance in early March 2013.[3]

Aftermath of coup d'etat

In the aftermath of the 2013 Egyptian coup d'état, Abu Ismail was arrested on 5 July 2013.[11] On 14 July Egypt's prosecutor general Hisham Barakat ordered Abu Ismail's assets to be frozen.[12] Abu Ismail appeared in court on 18 November and stated: “If there is no real justice at the court hall, I will cede the defense.”[13]

He was sentenced to 1 year imprisonment on 20 January 2014 and received a second sentence of 1 year imprisonment on 12 April for insulting the judiciary.[14][15] He was sentenced to 7 years imprisonment on 16 April on charges of forging official documents during his application to run for president.[16] He was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment on 29 January 2017 on charges of inciting the besieging of a Nasr City court in December 2012.[17]

Egypt Watch, an independent advocacy and research platform, have described his trials and convictions as politically motivated.[18]

References
  1. "Abu Ismail initiates Al-Raya Party". Daily News Egypt. 27 February 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  2. "Egypt's presidential race: Battle of the beards". The Economist. 7 April 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  3. "Islamist political parties form alliance". Ahram Online. 9 March 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  4. Kirkpatrick, David D. (1 April 2012). "In Egyptian Hard-Liner's Surge, New Worries for the Muslim Brotherhood". New York Times. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  5. "Dogma and purity v worldly politics". The Economist. 20 October 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  6. Fleishman, Jeffrey (5 April 2012). "Egyptian Islamists pin their hopes on Islamic law". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  7. "Anti-American Egyptian Candidate May Be Tripped Up by Mother's U.S. Ties". New York Times. 4 April 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  8. "Islamists rally to rescue Salafi candidate's presidential bid". Los Angeles Times. 6 April 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  9. Fleishman, Jeffrey (14 April 2012). "Egypt disqualifies 3 leading presidential candidates". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  10. "Nour Party: Recent resignations aren't significant". Egypt Independent. 29 December 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  11. "Egyptian hardline Islamist presidential candidate arrested". Reuters. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  12. "Asset freeze for Islamist leaders goes into action". Egypt Independent. 15 July 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  13. "Court adjourns Abu Ismail trial". Egypt Independent. 18 November 2013. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  14. "Salafi preacher and politician Abu Ismail sentenced for insulting judiciary". Aswat Masriya. 20 January 2014. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  15. "Salafist preacher Abu-Ismail jailed for insulting judiciary - Politics - Egypt". Ahram Online.
  16. "StackPath". dailynewsegypt.com. 18 November 2013.
  17. "Egyptian court sentences Salafist figure Hazem Salah Abu Ismail to 5 years in prison". Ahram Online.
  18. "Son of former presidential candidate Hazem Salah arrested". Egypt Watch.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hazem Salah Abu Ismail.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.