POLICE HARASSMENT AT NOUR EVENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CAIRO 002031

SIPDIS

NEA/ELA FOR SHAMPAIGN AND PINA
NSC FOR KUMAR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/22/2019
TAGS: PREL PGOV PKDEM PHUM EG
SUBJECT: POLICE HARASSMENT AT NOUR EVENT

REF: A. CAIRO 1857

B. 2005 CAIRO 4264

C. 2005 CAIRO 8034

D. 2005 CAIRO 7450

E. 2005 CAIRO 2285

F. 2005 CAIRO 9209

Classified By: Minister-Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs
Donald A. Blome for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Key Points:

-- (C) Ayman Nour confirmed reports of police harassment at
an event for artists and poets held on the evening of October
21 in support of his campaign against succession. Items
seized by police were returned except a laptop used to store
information about the campaign. Nour associate Ahmed Abdel
Gawad was released after a half hour in custody.

-- (C) Nour launched the "Egyptian Campaign Against
Succession" on October 14, but is no longer heading it.
Cairo University Professor Hassan Nafaa has taken the lead.
Nour's campaign includes the Muslim Brotherhood (MB),
political movements like "April 6" and Kifaya and some
opposition parties.

-- (C) Nour will file a complaint on the police "raid" with
the Public Prosecutor. Nour also told us of a second
complaint he intends to file alleging security services were
complicit in bringing charges against him in 2005.


2. (C) Comment: Following his release, Nour has remained
active in the political scene despite the restrictions
against him (Reftel A). The recent announcement of the
"Egyptian Campaign Against Succession" (ECAS) has been his
highest profile effort to date and has clearly piqued the
interest of the security services. MB participation in the
ECAS is likely also of concern to the GoE. He has indicated
to us in the past that he had "evidence of collusion" by
members of the security services in bringing the case against
him in 2005. He said he was "waiting for the right time to
use it." We do not have any indication that this "evidence"
(which we have not seen) will aid in any way in overturning
his conviction. Nour's anti-succession campaign received a
lot of press attention but has been less successful in
garnering the participation of mainstream opposition forces.
The naming of the well-respected Dr. Hassan Nafaa to lead
ECAS might be seen as a way to draw those members of the
opposition who speak out against succession but are not fans
of Ayman Nour. End Comment.


3. (C) Ayman Nour confirmed to us reports of police
harassment at an October 21 event at the Ayman Nour Cultural
Center in Bab El-Shaariyya. (Note: This is a community
center in Nour's former constituency that he has used to host
El Ghad Party events. It is also used by the local community
for other private events. End Note.) The celebration was to
highlight support by artists and poets for the Nour-initiated
"Egyptian Campaign Against Succession" launched on October

14. The coalition is now being led by Cairo University
professor and political commentator Dr. Hassan Nafaa. Nour
has told us he will step down from a primary leadership role
but that he has retained control of ECAS's "organizational"
and "activities" committees. Kifaya activist George Is'haq
will lead the Legal Committee (focused on possible
constitutional reform). A yet-to be named MB member will
head the Political Committee. ECAS will also have an
Economic Committee and a committee focused on tracking
government efforts to "promote" Gamal Mubarak. Participants
in the Coalition include El Ghad, April 6, Kifaya, Amal
(Note: The Islamist party not associated with Egypt's labor
movement that was shut down by the Political Parties Affairs
Committee. End Note.),Anwar Sadat's Reform and Development
Party, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Karama party, the
Communist Party of Egypt (Note: Founded in 2002, they have
not applied for registration as a legal party, citing the
hostile environment for the opposition. End Note.) and
individual but not official participation by members of the
Democratic Front Party (DFP),the Nasserist Party, Tagammu
(the liberal socialist party) and the Wafd. Media report
that Dr. Nafaa will reach out to these parties to urge them
to join ECAS or at least announce their support for its
goals. On October 22, the independent daily Al Masry Al Yom
reported that DFP leader Osama El Ghazali Harb announced his
support for ECAS along with his party's rejection of a 6th
term for President Mubarak and the succession of Gamal
Mubarak using the slogan "A true Egyptian says NO to
succession," borrowed from the national railway campaign "A
true Egyptian says NO to wrong-doing."

CAIRO 00002031 002 OF 002




4. (C) According to Nour and Sayed Bassiouny (El Ghad
Assistant Secretary General and President of the Alexandria
Committee),festivities began early and included patriotic
songs played on a loud speaker. At seven p.m. uniformed
officers entered the gathering saying they were responding to
complaints from neighbors about the noise. They detained
Nour associate Ahmed Abdel Gawad, took possession of a laptop
(which reportedly includes information about the campaign
against succession),a projector and two amplifiers. Gawad
was released after a half hour in police custody. All items
taken but the laptop have been returned. Nour confirmed that
he arrived at eight p.m. after police had left the center.
Separately, Bassiouny confirmed there was no damage to the
center and no one was harmed. Neither Nour nor Bassiouny
were able confirm claims made to the Blog Bikya Misr that
fifty officers raided the event. Nour told us that he had
commented on the event to several newspapers. We have not
yet seen significant coverage of this event in the media.


5. (C) In a conversation on the morning of October 22 while
Nour was on his way to the Public Prosecutors office, he said
that the October 21 incident had crossed a line and he had
decided to file an official complaint. Nour also told us
that he will file a second complaint today alleging
complicity of State Security Investigations Services (SSIS)
officers in the case filed against him in 2005.
Specifically, Nour claimed to have a 2005 letter sent by
Regab Hillal Hameida, an MP affiliated with the
pro-government "parallel" El Ghad party led by former Nour
confidante Musa Musa and formed in 2005 (Reftels B, C and D),
to Lieutenant Colonel Amr Mohsen, whom Nour calls the officer
in charge of "political party activity." The letter makes
allegations that Nour was an "agent" of the U.S. government
and had secretly received funding for his 2005 presidential
campaign from the U.S. According to Nour it was this
document that began the original investigation against him.
Nour alleges that these accusations were manufactured and
when not corroborated, charges he forged signatures in
support of the Ghad Party license were brought against him
(Reftels E and F). Nour added that Lt.Col. Mohsen had been
present at the October 21 "raid" at his cultural center.
Scobey