A Qatari court will consider an appeal made by two Egyptians convicted and imprisoned in Doha on charges of espionage, according to an Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement Thursday. Ministry officials said the judiciary plans to look into the appeal by this October. Sources told Al-Masry Al-Youm Thursday the two men were sentenced four months ago in a Doha court to life imprisonment. The sources also revealed the espionage charges were economic and financial rather than political. The two men were charged with revealing information to Egyptian authorities involving transactions between Qatar and Asian entities in an effort to compete for certain business deals. In a press statement, Ambassador Mohamed Abdel-Hakim, the Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs and Egyptians Abroad, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is following the case. "There is a hearing next October to appeal the case and it is in everyone's best interest that this issue be dealt with in a wise and calm manner, which is exactly what the Ministry has been doing since it was first notified with this case," said Abdel-Hakim. He went on to say the Egyptian embassy in Doha has been in constant contact with the relevant authorities in Qatar since 2007 and its efforts resulted in the release of the two men on bail until their sentencing earlier this year. Al-Masry Al-Youm also revealed that one of the convicts, Nabil Abdel Basir, the former general manager of special editions for the Qatari newspaper Al-Raya, worked at the publication for several years but was more involved in advertisement than actual journalism. Al-Masry Al-Youm learned from reliable sources the investigation into this case had been going on for a period of three years, during which Abdel Basir continued to live his life normally until the case reached the court. At that time, he was detained.
