A member of the Thabet family told Reuters the two men were released from a police station and returned home, but said the family had no other information about why they were freed. Reuters
A member of the Thabet family told Reuters the two men were released from a police station and returned home, but said the family had no other information about why they were freed. Reuters
A member of the Thabet family told Reuters the two men were released from a police station and returned home, but said the family had no other information about why they were freed. Reuters
A member of the Thabet family told Reuters the two men were released from a police station and returned home, but said the family had no other information about why they were freed. Reuters

Egypt releases Juhayna CEO and son after two-year detention


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The founder and former chief executive of Juhayna Food Industries and his son were released from prison in Egypt on Saturday.

Safwan and Seifeldin Thabet spent about two years in detention for allegedly supporting a terrorist group in a case that shook the business community as well as Egyptian and foreign investors.

Juhayna, a listed company, is the country's largest dairy products and juices producer.

After security and prison sources as well as a family member told Reuters about the men's release, photos posted on social media showed them joyfully embracing relatives after returning home.

The pair were detained for allegedly belonging to and financing an unidentified terrorist group believed to be the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, according to state media.

The Thabet family have denied any wrongdoing.

The two men were never convicted.

There was no immediate official statement from the authorities about the release.

A member of the Thabet family told Reuters the two men were released from a police station and returned home, but said the family had no other information about why they were freed.

A prison source told Reuters that the case against them had not been closed.

Safwan Thabet, Juhayna's founder and former chief executive, was detained in December 2020. His son took over before he too was detained in February 2021.

The family had pleaded for their release partly due to the illness of Safwan Thabet’s wife, who died during his detention.

Also on December 7 to 9, the third edition of the Gulf Car Festival (www.gulfcarfestival.com) will take over Dubai Festival City Mall, a new venue for the event. Last year's festival brought together about 900 cars worth more than Dh300 million from across the Emirates and wider Gulf region – and that first figure is set to swell by several hundred this time around, with between 1,000 and 1,200 cars expected. The first day is themed around American muscle; the second centres on supercars, exotics, European cars and classics; and the final day will major in JDM (Japanese domestic market) cars, tuned vehicles and trucks. Individuals and car clubs can register their vehicles, although the festival isn’t all static displays, with stunt drifting, a rev battle, car pulls and a burnout competition.

Stamp duty timeline

December 2014: Former UK finance minister George Osbourne reforms stamp duty, replacing the slab system with a blended rate scheme, with the top rate increasing to 12 per cent from 10 per cent:
Up to £125,000 - 0%; £125,000 to £250,000 – 2%; £250,000 to £925,000 – 5%; £925,000 to £1.5m: 10%; Over £1.5m – 12%

April 2016: New 3% surcharge applied to any buy-to-let properties or additional homes purchased.

July 2020: Rishi Sunak unveils SDLT holiday, with no tax to pay on the first £500,000, with buyers saving up to £15,000.

March 2021: Mr Sunak decides the fate of SDLT holiday at his March 3 budget, with expectations he will extend the perk unti June.

April 2021: 2% SDLT surcharge added to property transactions made by overseas buyers.

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Updated: January 22, 2023, 6:23 AM`