An Egyptian administrative court on Sunday appointed a technical engineering expert in a lawsuit filed by residents of Toson in eastern Alexandria challenging a government decision to expropriate their homes for a planned ring road, in a move that could reshape the case.
The court, which had been set to issue a ruling in Case No. 3122/80, instead agreed to the plaintiffs’ request to bring in an independent engineering expert to examine whether an alternative route exists for the eastern Alexandria ring road that would avoid demolishing homes.
The lawsuit seeks to overturn a prime ministerial decree expropriating properties in Toson for public benefit as part of a 23-kilometer highway under the East Alexandria development project.
Mohamed Ramadan, head of the Toson residents’ defense team, told Al Manassa the court granted the defense request to appoint an engineering expert to verify the existence of an alternative route the team had presented in its pleadings.
He said the move could change the course of the case, especially after the State Commissioners’ Authority recommended dismissing it, but the court did not follow the commissioners’ opinion and instead accepted the defense requests.
Residents of Toson in eastern Alexandria filed a formal appeal in November seeking to suspend the prime minister’s decision to expropriate their homes for public benefit.
Ramadan said the commissioners’ recommendation to dismiss the case was based on finding that the “public benefit” condition was met. He also said a company was acting as an intermediary between the state and residents, adding that five residents sold their homes for half their value because of what he described as the company’s intimidation.
Ramadan called for the release of Abdallah Mohamed, a Toson residents’ spokesperson who was arrested by security forces, saying the aim was to frighten residents.
In April, the Alexandria governor formed a committee to assess properties along the proposed highway route. The committee is headed by the Montaza second district chief and includes representatives from several state bodies, including the military engineering authority.
A group of Toson residents met in the street on Sept. 2 with several lawyers to discuss legal options to stop their eviction.
After the meeting, stickers spread across homes insisting residents would stay, but men in civilian clothes removed them the next day.
Abdallah Mohamed was then arrested, and the Supreme State Security Prosecution charged him with “joining a terrorist group.”
In previous remarks to Al Manassa, Ramadan said Toson residents were surprised by an expropriation decision that covers 260 homes, four mosques, and a church in a single block in an area home to more than 5,000 people. He said the only solution is to rescind the decision.
He added that residents did not stand idly by, hiring an engineering consultancy to study alternatives to the route proposed by the state, and said it identified an alternative path that would not require demolishing homes.
All homes in the area are connected to public utilities, including electricity, natural gas, water, landline telephones and sewage, and most have obtained official building reconciliation approvals for violations.
