Egypt court designates Islamic State as terror organisation

Cairo, Dec 1: A court in Cairo on Sunday designated Islamic State (IS), also known as Daesh, as a terror group, a media report said.

The ruling of the Court for Urgent Matters came in favour of a lawsuit filed by an Egyptian advocate that demanded the group be labeled as a terror entity, Xinhua reported citing state-run MENA news agency.

In his lawsuit, the lawyer claimed that the Sunni radical group fully backs terrorist acts the Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis terror group has carried out against Egypt's army in restive Sinai Peninsula.

IS, which rules large parts of war-torn Iraq and Syria, is labeled as terror group by the US, the West and many Arab and Islamic states.

IS has no activities in Egypt, however, many Egyptians have joined the group

IS has no activities in Egypt, however, many Egyptians have joined the group in Syria and Iraq. The Sinai-based Ansar Bayt al- Maqdis was designated by court verdict as a terror group in April.

The US also blacklisted Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis as a terror group earlier this year.

The group, which was founded in 2011, claimed responsibility of dozens of deadly attacks against Egypt military and police personnel and institutions across the country since the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July last year.

Last week, the Egyptian cabinet approved a draft anti-terrorism law incriminating any group that attempts to disturb general order or harm social peace as a terrorist group.

IANS