Ikhwanweb :: The Muslim Brotherhood Official English Website

- Tragic death of Dr. Yasser a test that made detained leaders thank God

- The case is fabricated. The prosecutors sympathized with us but their swords were against us.

- A judge told us:" I prayed to Allah to help me avoid reading sentences because they aren’t issued by me".

-We proved to the world that our group is clear of terrorism and money laundry charges.

 Engineer Saeed Saad Ali Abdou was born on Dec, 31, 1957, in the city of Al Hamul, Kafr El Sheikh Governate, he got BA in engineering in 1980, grade very good. 5 years later, he became treasurer of the Engineers Syndicate in Kafr Al-Sheikh, and joined the Muslim Brotherhood when he was still a university student. He was the first to spread the Muslim Brotherhood thought in the city and district of Al Hamul.

We met him after he was acquitted of a farcical military trial for the biggest fabricated case against 40 Egyptian reformists affiliated to the Muslim Brotherhood. The interview with him has a special flavor because of two reasons: first: his deep faith, second, the interview with engineer Saeed Saad is held after his eldest son Yasser, a student in the Faculty of Medicine, passed away shortly before he was acquitted from the Haikestepp military court, in an accident, releasing him from prison to attend his son"s funeral.

 He talked about his wife Rawda Mohamed Al Shennawi in the interview in a way that makes one feels he is talking about a wife from heaven. He laid down a road map for his life in the world and in the afterlife. He pointed out that what he was planning to do when he is released from prison is to raise- along with fellow members- banners of truth and righteousness and fight injustice.

He told us in the interview that a judge informed them when the trial was adjourned for the second time that he was praying to Allah overnight to help him avoid issuing any verdict against them, noting that the verdicts were prepared in advance, and that the case is politically motivated and is fabricated.

Ikhwanweb: How do you feel after these tough times, the injustice of the military trials and the death of your son?

Saeed Saad: Thanks and all praise be to Allah under all conditions. The death of Dr. Yasser was a relief for some of our fellow leaders who were sentenced to 7, 5 and 3 years in prison, to show them that ordeals may vary and that they should be patient. As for me and the family, we ask Allah to give us patience.

Ikhwanweb: Returning back in time to the first moments of this farce (trial)?, could you tell us what happened.

Saeed Saad: On Jan, 13th, 2007, I was among the last group that appeared before the state security prosecutor. I was stunned when they told me that they added us to case 963 of Al-Azhar. I raised my eyebrows in astonishment. I was in Kafr Al-Sheikh and they included me in a case called (Albir "Charity" Case) then they added me to Al-Azhar Case. I understood then that fabrication is the master of the situation. How come that while I am in the utmost north of the republic, I can support, supply and incite from my remote place Al-Azhar University students in Cairo?!

All of us were sent to Torah farm prison after engineer Khairat Al-Shater was moved to it from Al-Mahkoum prison. At that time, we felt that there is a big conspiracy against us.

Ikhwanweb: How was this conspiracy prepared for you?

Saeed Saad: Our group was given 15 days pending investigation, and jail order was in writing and was in my file in front of the state security prosecution. When I noticed it I told investigator that the prison order has been issued before they ordered it. This means that the case is fabricated and an unscrupulous political rivalry from the regime which prepares rulings in advance throughout the trial.

Even when we appeared before the military prosecution when we were serving this prison period, we faced no investigation while the military prosecutor told the media that the jail period was prolonged because investigations haven"t come to an end although they didn"t hold any investigation with us. When we objected to this, one of the investigators wept and said to us: ”be patient", and we said to ourselves, “their hearts sympathize with us while their swords are on our necks.”

Ikhwanweb: If this case is- you said- a conspiracy, why has a defense team been formed for you?

Saeed Saad: We were witnessing a farce whose parts were very well drawn. We thought first to ignore it and not to allow lawyers to defend us, but after deliberations we decided not to be passive and to defend ourselves and our group in front of those unjust people.

I confirm to all that we fully devoted the 73 trial sessions to defend our group and to first clear our group of terrorism and money laundry charges in front of the entire world, so that all the world hear the voice of our group and to spread our message.

This farcical case was without any evidence or witnesses, but we faced false witnesses led by Atef Al Husseini and the anti-graft committee against whom the defense team proved more than 20 cases of forgery.

Ikhwanweb: The end of your trial was dramatic; would you tell us exactly what happened?

Saeed Saad: It was actually very bizarre. We arrived at the court at 10.45 am. The session started at 1.20 pm. Those attending the session were only military police intelligence and state security personnel, while no one of our defense team was in the court. Security officiers assaulted our families outside the court including my son Yasser.

Another bizarre incident was when the verdicts were issued. This happens only in the Muslim Brotherhood, among those who were brought up according to ordains of the Book of Allah those who follow the messenger and his traditions. The bizarre incident was that those who were acquitted wept and cried while those who unjustly received verdicts and prison sentences were congratulating their fellow leaders, an incident which raised the eyebrows of those who saw it. But it isn"t that bizarre in the Muslim Brotherhood community where the one finds fraternity and love for the sake of Allah.

Ikhwanweb: How did you receive the verdict?

Saeed Saad: The verdicts are a miniature and a reflection of a foolish regime that has no evidence, cannot reform itself, a regime that adopts violence, terrorism and tyranny although these are tools of the weak and defeated ones.

We fully condemn sending fellow leaders to prison on the bases of these unjust rulings. They are sent to prison for politically motivated false accusations to the extent that the judge was reading verdicts as if he saw it for the first time at that moment. I think he was like us stunned by these verdicts.

One of these judges sent us a message- after the trial session was adjourned for the second time- in which he told us that he was praying overnight to God to help him avoid issuing any verdicts against us because they aren’t issued by him.

Ikhwanweb: What has changed after 15 months in the military trial?

Saeed Saad: What we are doing after it is the same thing we were doing before and during it. I mean carrying the banner of truth and fight unjust rulers regardless of their might and regardless of their injustices of freezing our assets, depriving us of our children and wives. We will never scrap our principles and we will maintain our mission because this is the way to heaven and paradise. They can"t make us deviate from this way till we reach its end regardless of prison and detention.

We offer these periods of prison as a sacrifice for our nation to make it lead other nations, to raise the word of Allah, and make people enjoy this. Our loved ones and families should know that the only thing relieving the pain of our prison and relieving our separation from children and wives was only the hope that we can help justice prevail.

Ikhwanweb: What is your view regarding filing a suit to receive a compensation for what you faced?

Saeed Saad: Such legal measures can be taken at the appropriate time and through appropriate people. Our struggle against oppressors is long and till death. The most important thing is that we continue working and sacrificing to raise the banner of justice and freedom with our brothers.

Ikhwanweb: From the ordeal of the unjust prison to the ordeal of the death of the dear elder son. What do you want to say?

Saeed Saad: I say may God bless my patient wife, and we pray to Allah to bestow His mercy on us and to gather us with our son in Paradise to hug him again after I missed this hug in the world. We hope that Allah give us patience.

Ikhwanweb: What is the message that you want to send to the youth specially the Muslim Brotherhood youth?

Saeed Saad: Young men, life is short, Yasser your 22-year-old colleague died. Expect death at any moment, and choose for yourselves the death that pleases you. Die while you are obeying Allah and fighting for right and truth. Life is shorter than what you think.

Ikhwanweb: What do you want to say to the Egyptian people?

Saeed Saad: What I want to say to the Egyptian people is to urge them move from the mere sympathy to start working to attain the values of truth and justice.