French Chief Justice okays Nafie investigation by Egyptian judiciary

The French Chief Justice approved a request by the Egyptian judicial authorities to have Ibrahim Nafie, chief editor of Al-Ahram newspaper and chairman of the Egyptian Journalists syndicate and Arab Journalists Union, be interrogated by an Egyptian court in the anti-Semitism charges levied against and attributed to him by the French Supreme Court.

The French judge also adjourned the case indefinitely, as Ibrahim Nafie did not show up at the court, and decided that the investigations be done by an Egyptian court to the end, then inform the French court of the conclusion to let the Egyptian court carry out the investigations, in accordance with the international accord in this respect signed on 15 March 1982.

The issue started on 25 January 2001 when a group opposing racism and anti-Semitism filed a lawsuit at Paris Court claiming that an article was published on Al-Ahram containing some sentences that represent a crime of instigation for violence and racial discrimination.

The Arab Organization for Human Rights presented a memorandum to the International Committee of Human Rights at the UN European Headquarters in Geneva to refute "the Zionist attempts to muffle the Egyptian press."