CAIRO, April 4 - RAPSI, Rafael Daminov. Interpol has refused to put former Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq on the wanted list, stating that the charges against him could be politically motivated, Ahmed Helmi, an aide to the Interior Minister, told the media on Wednesday.

Shafiq, who narrowly lost last year's presidential race to President Mohammed Morsi, the official candidate of the powerful Muslim Brotherhood, fled the country immediately after the election. He is currently residing in the UAE with his family.

In February, the Egyptian prosecutor general asked Interpol and the UAE authorities to arrest and extradite Shafiq, who is wanted in connection with a fraud case. He is accused of misappropriation of lands owned by the country's Civil Aviation Ministry and Airforce while he held the post of Civil Aviation Minister in 2002-2011. He is also accused of illegally selling state land to the sons of former president Hosni Mubarak, Alaa and Gamal, who are now serving a prison sentence.

Shafiq has claimed the accusations against him are politically motivated. The first hearing of his case is scheduled for April 23.