Egypt arrests 12 senior Muslim Brotherhood members in crackdown

May 14, 2009, 13:32 GMT

Cairo- Egyptian security forces arrested 12 senior members of the banned opposition movement the Muslim Brotherhood on Thursday in the largest crackdown on the group since 2006.

The members were arrested in dawn raids at their homes on charges of joining a banned group, security sources told the German Press Agency dpa.

Charges also include obtaining documents that instigate a regime change in the country, the source added.

The arrests took place in six of Egypt's regions, sources in the Brotherhood movement told dpa.

Among those arrested is Osama Nasr, a member ofthe executive body of the group, the Brotherhood source added.

The Muslim Brotherhood is Egypt's largest opposition group. Despite official banning, it achieved a historic victory in the 2005 legislative elections after its members ran as independents winning around 20 per cent of the seats in the People's Assembly.

Thursday's arrests are the second major crackdown since December 2006. Then authorities arrested 16 Brotherhood members after student members of the group staged a militia-style demonstration at Al-Azhar University.

In a statement the Brotherhood said that the crackdown on Thursday is 'part of the Egyptian regime's strategy to curtail the group and prevent it from exercising a role in the Egyptian political life.'