By Moutaz Ali.
Cairo, 13 November 2014:
The administration for the 17 February Schools of the Martyrs in Egypt is attempting to reopen its . . .[restrict]schools shut-down by the Egyptian authorities a week ago and which has left nearly 2,000 children without schooling.
According to the Head of School at the Cairo-Madinat Nasr campus, Khaled Sakran, the administration has filed an appeal with the Egyptian Ministry of Education and expects a decision by the end of the day on Thursday.
Should the appeal be denied, the schools plan to take another course of action.
“Libyan Minister of Education Fathi Al-Majbri is scheduled to arrive in Cairo on Friday for talks with officials in the Egyptian Ministry of Education to ensure that the schools will be able to resume operations next week,” Sakran said.
Problems started for the schools last week when the Egyptian satellite channel, Al-Mahour, claimed that there was evidence of immoral behaviour between male and female students at the schools, as well as the harbouring of terrorists within school walls. The station also accused Sakran of having ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.
This came as one of the school’s primary investors filed a complaint against the schools with the Egyptian police, also alleging a connection between Sakran and the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as claiming to have evidence of terrorist activities on campus.
“We understand the concern of the Egyptian authorities regarding these horrible accusations that have come from one of our own partners. Though the accusations were false, we realise that their decision to shut down the schools was a very difficult one,” Shakran said.
Regarding his alleged ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, Shakran was confused and amused.
“I am only a businessman with no political leanings, however, as a human being, I hate the Muslim Brotherhood.”
Sakran believes that neither the Egyptian nor the Libyan governments would deprive 1,985 Libyan pupils of nearly a full academic year of learning. [/restrict]
