Egypt prosecutor investigates suspected Israeli spy

[Jefferson23]

Ilan Grapel, the Jewish American citizen detained in Egypt under suspicion of espionage for Israel, was brought before Egypt's public prosecutor under heavy security on Wednesday.

Grapel, who continued to deny claims that he has ties to Mossad, will be investigated along with six other people who have alleged links to him, according to a Channel 10 report.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak told Channel 10 news on Wednesday evening that the allegations against Grapel were "unfounded."

"In my opinion Egypt knows this," he said.

snip* Al-Ahram reported on Tuesday that Grapel planned to get from Egypt to a rebel hub in Eastern Libya. The Egyptian paper reported that the Egyptian prosecution is claiming that Grapel met with a group of people, some of whom were European, in southern Egypt before traveling to Cairo on the day of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's resignation.

A former paratrooper in the Israel Defense Forces with dual American-Israeli citizenship, Grapel reportedly travelled to several parts of Egypt, and was given the task of gauging the public's reaction to the policies of the Egyptian high military council.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/egypt-prosecutor-investigates-suspected-israeli-spy-1.367923

[Jefferson23]

1. 'Suspected Israeli spy declared himself Muslim to get Egypt visa'

Ilan Grapel, a Jewish American citizen detained in Egypt, may face trial next week on suspicion of espionage, the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram reports.

By Haaretz

Ilan Grapel, the Jewish American citizen detained in Egypt under suspicion of espionage for Israel, declared he was Muslim in order to get a visa, the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram reported Thursday.

According to the report, Egypt security forces claim that Grapel, who holds both American and Israeli passports, tried to collect information on the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation agreement signed in Cairo, and Grapel may face trial as early as next week.

The report states that Grapel identified himself as Muslim when he requested a visa for Egypt at the Egyptian consulate in Tel Aviv.

The newspaper also claims that Grapel is a Mossad agent who tried to recruit Egyptians and spark a conflict between the Egyptian people and the army.

in full: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/suspected-israeli-spy-declared-himself-muslim-to-get-egypt-visa-1.368033

[Jefferson23]

2. Egyptian judge denies plans to charge American-Israeli accused of spying

An Egyptian judicial official said yesterday that the prosecution does not plan to prosecute an American-Israeli man who was arrested in Cairo and accused of spying for Israel.

For the first time since Ilan Grapel was arrested, about a week, Judge Hisham Badawi of the Supreme State Security Prosecution issued a categorical denial of published reports ostensibly based on leaks from the investigation.

"Everything published in the Al Ahram newspaper this morning is fundamentally mistaken," Badawi was quoted as telling the Internet newspaper The Seventh Day yesterday.

Al Ahram had also reported that before coming to Egypt, Grapel had tried to get a visa to Egypt from the Egyptian Embassy in Tel Aviv by declaring he was a Muslim.

The newspaper, basing itself on what it said were leaks from the investigation room, said Grapel had sent numerous messages to the Mossad. He sent emails from various cafes in Cairo to cover his tracks, in addition to his efforts to collect information on the Palestinian reconciliation agreement and the Egyptian response to the post-Mubarak leadership.

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/egyptian-judge-denies-plans-to-charge-american-israeli-accused-of-spying-1.368134