Reports circulate on social media on Egypt soccer star’s possible acquittal by top court

The highest court in Egypt’s common court system has acquitted retired soccer star Mohamed Aboutrika from charges that included funding a terrorist organisation, and ordered the removal of his name from the state’s terror list, according to Egyptian news outlets and social media users.

The news is yet to be confirmed by the Court of Cassation. Aboutrika had written on his official Facebook page on Friday, “Every difficult thing is easy if you seek God’s help,” but he did refer to his court case or mention it in the post.

Egypt football legend Abu Trika defiant after asset seizure – Cartoon [Carlos Latuff/MiddleEastMonitor]

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Since the coup, the state has launched an unprecedented crackdown on dissidents. Thousands were tried or subjected to enforced disappearance or extrajudicial detention under the pretext of being members or supporters of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood. Most recently, authorities arrested Coptic rights activist Ramy Kamel and briefly detained a group of journalists from Mada Masr, one of the few independent media outlets that continued to operate after the coup.

The Brotherhood has repeatedly denied any ties to terror.