Egyptian authorities deported a German man who had been detained over suspected militant links,
the online edition of state-run newspaper al-Ahram reported on Friday.
The 23-year-old Egyptian-born man was initially reported in December as being missing before his whereabouts were established.
Al-Ahram, citing security authorities, said the man had been earlier arrested at Cairo airport for allegedly attempting to join Islamic
State militants in Egypt’s Sinai.
According to the report, the suspect, a student at an Islamic university in Saudi Arabia, was deported on Thursday to Germany.
The website showed images of the man being checked at Cairo airport before his deportation, meanwhile, neither Egyptian nor German
officials have confirmed the al-Ahram report.
The same newspaper reported that another German man, who had been earlier arrested at Egypt’s southern city of Luxor, would be
deported after the completion of relevant procedures.
The 18-year-old man, who had also been reported missing for several weeks in Egypt, is being held in custody after he was allegedly
found in possession of maps showing North Sinai, an Egyptian hotbed for Islamist militants.
According to al-Ahram, security authorities found out that the man had come to Egypt purportedly to join extremists in North Sinai.
However, family sources told dpa that the man, who has German and Egyptian citizenship, had travelled to Egypt in mid-December
with plans to visit his grandfather in Cairo after first spending time in Luxor.
An online petition calling for his release has been started. Signatories call on German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas to take up negotiations.
There were over 53,000 signatures on Thursday.
