Egypt's leading opposition figure Mohamed ElBaradeiEgyptian law scholar and Iranian catspaw. He was head of the IAEA from December 1997 to November 2009. At some point during his tenure he was purchased by the Iranians. ElBaradei and the IAEA were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for something in 2005. After stepping down from his IAEA position ElBaradei attempted to horn in on the 2011 Egyptian protests which culminated in the collapse of the Mubarak regime. ElBaradei served on the Board of Trustees of the International Crisis Group, a lefty NGO that is bankrolled by the Carnegie Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, as well as George Soros' Open Society Institute. Soros himself serves as a member of the organization's Executive Committee.
has lashed out at the country's ruling military council for allowing Americans on trial in Cairo to leave the country, saying the military leaders have formed a "banana republic."
"Some countries are independent but some others have a banana republic, a fake and unrealistic republic," said ElBaradei, in reference to the country's military rulers.
ElBaradei, who was the head of the ineffective International Atomic Energy Agency from 1997 to 2009, added that interference in the judicial system will ruin democracy and freedom, and highlighted the need for accountability.
A total of 43 foreign and Egyptian activists, including the son of the US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, have been accused of receiving illegal funds and running unlicensed NGOs in Egypt.
On Wednesday, the Egyptian government allowed the Americans in the case to leave the Arab country on a bail of 32 million pounds. The 16 Americans departed Cairo in a US government plane on Thursday.
The decision has outraged Egyptians across the political spectrum, who say the ruling generals put immense pressure on the judges to lift the travel ban.
The judges hearing the case resigned earlier this week.
Earlier, US authorities had threatened to cut a USD 1.5-billion annual aid to Egypt if the issue was not 'resolved.'
Many Egyptians suspect that the US is instigating the recent unrest in the country, by funding civil society groups in Egypt.