CAIRO, Jan 18 (Aswat Masriya) - Egypt's state prosecutor has referred on Wednesday 304 members of Hasam movement to military prosecutors, reported state-run MENA news agency.

The defendants face charges of belonging to Hasam militant movement, which the ministry of interior had accused of being an affiliate of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood organisation.

The suspects are accused of involvement in at least 14 terrorist attacks including failed assassination attempts against Egypt’s former grand mufti Ali Gomaa and assistant prosecutor general Zakaria Abdel-Aziz.

The recently emerged movement has stepped up attacks targeting security personnel and high profile figures. 

The group claimed responsibility for the death of a policeman in front of his house in Beheira in October and for an explosion that killed six personnel in Haram district in Giza earlier in December.

The prosecution decision comes around a month after Egypt’s interior ministry said that a leader of Hasam movement was killed in exchange of fire in Giza.