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New Trial for Egyptian-US Activist VOA News 6 Feb 2002 13:53 UTC 
Egypt's highest appeals court has ordered a retrial for Egyptian-American scholar and human rights activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim.
The Court of Cassation in Cairo ruled that Mr. Ibrahim and 26 co-defendants will be retried before a state security court. The date for a new trial was not set.
Mr. Ibrahim was convicted last May and sentenced to seven years in prison on charges that included tarnishing Egypt's image and spreading false reports about electoral fraud and religious persecution. He was also convicted of accepting funding from the European Union without government permission for his private think tank, the Ibn Khaldun Center for Development.
The Ibn Khaldun Center monitored Egypt's parliamentary elections and issued reports on relations between the country's Muslims and Christians.
Mr. Ibrahim's arrest and conviction drew strong criticism from international human rights groups, which said the verdict was politically motivated.
The Egyptian appeal courts twice postponed a decision before Wednesday's ruling for a retrial.
Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.
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