One of the judges, Mohamed Nagi Derballah, suggested issuing a statement condemning the takeover. Mursi, a member of Islamist group the Muslim Brotherhood, had been democratically elected a year earlier. Led by General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a former head of military intelligence, Egypt’s military had ousted President Mohamed Mursi and his government following mass popular protests against his rule. As they tucked into grilled kebab and tahina, the men discussed the military takeover that had taken place three weeks earlier. The judges, some of whom ranked amongst the most senior in Egypt, were there to break the Ramadan fast. CAIRO – On the evening of July 21, 2013, dozens of judges gathered on the Armada, a floating restaurant docked where the Nile glides past the leafy suburb of Maadi in southern Cairo.
