Detainee transfer is ruled illegal

An Egyptian court has ruled that a decision by President Hosni Mubarak to transfer 40 Muslim Brotherhood detainees to military courts was illegal, security sources said.

Abdel Moneim Abdel Maqsoud, a lawyer for the detainees, said the ruling in effect required their release, but that there was no guarantee the government would implement it.

The government often ignores court release orders in cases involving political opponents.

In its ruling, the administrative court said that the Egyptian Constitution and international law required that individuals be tried before their “natural” judge -- civilian courts in this case.

It also said the law recognized no “absolute authority,” a reference to Mubarak.