Published date: 6 April 2021 17:37 UTC | Last update: 31 sec ago The Biden administration has said a lawsuit against former Egyptian Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi, over his alleged involvement in torture, should be thrown out due to diplomatic immunity privileges he held at the time. In a filing submitted last week in a district court in Washington, the US Justice Department said "El Beblawi held diplomatic status at the time when the suit was commenced" and the court should dismiss "claims falling with the scope of his immunity". "Once the Department of State determines an individual’s diplomatic status, courts must not look behind the certification to perform their own analysis of its basis," Justice Department lawyers wrote in the filing, adding that it was not taking a position in the lawsuit itself.