lennart
16-05-04, 14:24
Muslim Brotherhood leaders held
Police have arrested at least 31 members of Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood in an ongoing crackdown against the organisation.
Aljazeera's correspondent reports that 12 leaders of the group were detained in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria, nine in Tanta, nine in Kfr al-Shaikh and one in Cairo.
Other reports cite Ali Abd Al-Fattah, a leading member of the group, as saying some of the detainees were prominent members and the rest from middle ranks.
He said police told the detainees they were arrested for belonging to an illegal group.
Police officials and the prosecutor's office could not immediately be reached.
The arrests apparently are part of a longstanding government crackdown on the brotherhood that, members say, stems from their continued protests against US involvement in Iraq and support of the Palestinians in their resistance against the Israeli occupation forces.
The Muslim Brotherhood was banned in 1954 for advocating an Islamic state for Egypt. Today, it says it supports peaceful means towards change and is generally tolerated by the state, with occasional crackdowns.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/E54372B1-BBE2-4DC3-AABF-7B2A56296C49.htm
Police have arrested at least 31 members of Egypt's outlawed Muslim Brotherhood in an ongoing crackdown against the organisation.
Aljazeera's correspondent reports that 12 leaders of the group were detained in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria, nine in Tanta, nine in Kfr al-Shaikh and one in Cairo.
Other reports cite Ali Abd Al-Fattah, a leading member of the group, as saying some of the detainees were prominent members and the rest from middle ranks.
He said police told the detainees they were arrested for belonging to an illegal group.
Police officials and the prosecutor's office could not immediately be reached.
The arrests apparently are part of a longstanding government crackdown on the brotherhood that, members say, stems from their continued protests against US involvement in Iraq and support of the Palestinians in their resistance against the Israeli occupation forces.
The Muslim Brotherhood was banned in 1954 for advocating an Islamic state for Egypt. Today, it says it supports peaceful means towards change and is generally tolerated by the state, with occasional crackdowns.
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/E54372B1-BBE2-4DC3-AABF-7B2A56296C49.htm