Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood declared 'terrorist group'
Supporters of Mohammed Morsi have held demonstrations since 3 July
The military-backed interim Egyptian government has declared the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist group.
The Islamist group, whose candidate Mohammed Morsi won the
country's first democratic presidential election last year before being
deposed by the military, had already been outlawed.Thousands of its supporters have been arrested in a crackdown by the police and military.
This escalation gives the authorities more power to crack down on them.
Hossam Eissa, Minister of Higher Education, read out a Cabinet statement announcing the move after a meeting on Wednesday.
"The Cabinet has declared the Muslim Brotherhood group and its organisation as a terrorist organisation," he said.
He added that the implications of the declaration were that those who belonged to the group, financed it or promoted its activities would face punishment.
Brotherhood supporters have staged protests since Mr Morsi's government was toppled on 3 July following widespread anti-Brotherhood protests.
The authorities blame the Brotherhood for the rash of militant attacks that have hit Egypt, a claim the group strongly denies.
No comments:
Post a Comment