Safwat El-Sherif, 88, who acted as Minister of Information under late President Hosni Mubarak rule, has died after a long struggle with illness.
His family revealed that he was buried in the family cemetery in Heliopolis, where they received condolences after a decision to cancel a funeral ritual due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Sherif had suffered from Leukemia for six years, his son Ehab said, adding that he was transferred to Wadi Al-Nile Hospital during the past few days to receive his treatment and to be followed up by the medical team.
Born in December 1933, he graduated from the Military Academy and was considered one of the most prominent figures of the Mubarak era.
For 22 years, Sherif had been the Minister of Information. He was transferred to the General Intelligence Service and then served as chairman of the State Information Service during the era of the late President Muhammad Anwar Sadat.
He was also one of the founding members of the National Democratic Party in 1966.
Sherif was handed a 3-year prison sentence in an illicit gain case. After the January 2011 revolution, he was brought to trial on a number of charges, including the killing of demonstrators, but the judiciary acquitted him of those charges.
Gamal Mubarak, son of the former Egyptian president, attended Sherif's funeral on Thursday.
Minister of State for Information Osama Heikal mourned the deceased, saying that he has left an impact on the Egyptian media throughout the past years.
Establishing the Egyptian Media Production City and launching the Egyptian Satellite "Nile Sat" are considered key achievements by Sherif.
