Cairo: Unknown gunmen shot dead a member of Egypt’s Salafist Al Nour Party in the North Sinai on Saturday, state media reported.
Two masked gunmen on motorbike fired at Mustafa Abdul Rahman outside his house in the city of Al Arish in North Sinai, according to Al Ahram newspaper, quoting local witnesses. Abdul Rahman was killed by the gunfire.
Security forces have launched a massive hunt for the suspected attackers.
Abdul Rahman, a pharmacist by profession, was Al Nour’s only contender in the parliamentary elections in North Sinai.
The ultra-conservative party confirmed his death, condemning it as a “bestial crime”.
Jalal Mura, the secretary general of the party, urged Egyptian authorities to “quickly” arrest the assailants.
“Members of our party in all governorates should hold their own ground and cling to the right without hesitation,” Mura said in a statement.
Al Nour backed the army’s 2013 toppling of Islamist president Mohammad Mursi following enormous street protests against his one-year rule. The stance earned the party hostility of Mursi’s followers.
Al Nour did not win any seat in the first round of Egypt’s parliamentary polls, held last week. Despite scathingly criticized the electoral process and its rules, Al Nour said it will continue in the two-phase election, which runs through December.
Twenty-four contestants from the party are vying for 222 seats reserved for individual contenders in run-offs due for Tuesday and Wednesday.
Egypt’s electoral law allows political parties to field candidates for seats designated for individuals.
Al Nour held a quarter of the 2012 parliament, coming second to Mursi’s now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.
Al Nour was established following the 2011 uprising that forced long-president Husny Mubarak to step down after nearly 30 years in power.
In recent months, Al Nour has been the target of a campaign mounted by secularists and pro-government media pushing for its dissolution allegedly for being a religious party in violation of the constitution.
