Region | Egypt
30 Brotherhood members held in Egypt
Egyptian police stormed a Muslim Brotherhood conference and detained 30 members of the country's largest opposition group in a raid in the northeast, sources in the group said on Saturday.
- Reuters
- Published: 22:50 November 8, 2008
Cairo: Egyptian police stormed a Muslim Brotherhood conference and detained 30 members of the country's largest opposition group in a raid in the northeast, sources in the group said on Saturday.
Muslim Brotherhood parliamentarian Fareed Esmail said police beat people with batons and destroyed his offices where the conference was being held in Sharqiya province.
The raid and detentions took place on Friday night as the men were attending an annual meeting hosted by Esmail for his constituents, he said.
Police initially detained around 40 men, but only 30 were brought before local prosecutors, and Muslim Brotherhood lawyer Abdul Moniem Abdul Maqsoud said it was possible some had been released.
Esmail said there had been about 1,500 Muslim Brotherhood members in attendance and that, due to lack of space, the crowd had spilled into the street.
Esmail said he had tried to obtain security clearance to hold the conference at a local club but had his request ignored.
The Brotherhood's website said prosecutors ordered the 30 men released, but that they were still in custody. Egyptian police frequently disregard court rulings ordering detained members of the opposition set free.
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