NICOSIA — A senior Hizbullah operative, convicted of establishing an operational cell, has escaped Egypt.

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Hizbullah said Sami Shihab broke out of an Egyptian prison amid the opposition campaign to topple President Hosni Mubarak, Middle East Newsline reported. Shihab was convicted of establishing a Hizbullah network that planned attacks throughout Egypt.

"He has left an Egyptian prison and is now safe and secure," Hizbullah spokesman Mahmoud Qamati said.

Qamati, a member of the Hizbullah Political Council, said Shihab escaped along with thousands of other inmates. Qamati did not say where Shihab, who had been sentenced in Egypt to 15 years, was hiding.

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