Senior aides held with ousted president Mohamed Morsi since Egypt's army toppled him nearly three weeks ago have asked their families for prison clothes, signalling possible charges, relatives said today.
Khaled El-Qazzaz, the former president's secretary for foreign relations, and top adviser Essam El-Haddad made the request in telephone conversations last Friday, their relatives told AFP.
The military, which overthrew Morsi on July 3 after mass protests demanding his resignation, faces international calls for the ousted Islamist leader's release.
It has refused to disclose his fate, and that of nine aides held with him, or their locations.
In a news conference yesterday, Morsi's relatives said they have not been allowed any contact with the deposed president and that they intend to sue the military for "kidnapping" him.
But relatives of Haddad and Qazzaz said they believed they were all still detained together with Morsi at a military facility, based on their telephone conversations.
The last contact was made on Friday, when Qazzaz called his home in Cairo and Haddad called his wife, relatives said.
"He called up his home and said 'I want white clothes,'" said Mona El-Qazzaz, his sister.
Prisoners awaiting trials or verdicts in Egypt wear white clothes, which may be provided by family members. They are issued blue uniforms after sentencing.
