Cairo: Egyptian authorities say they have arrested nine alleged Muslim Brotherhood leaders for planning to “disrupt order and security” on the upcoming anniversary of the 2011 Arab Spring uprising.
The interior ministry said on Wednesday that the men had scheduled meetings a day earlier in Cairo and had plans “aimed at provoking public opinion by exploiting the economic situation the country is going through and coordinating with extremist entities”.
The ministry accused the group, which authorities have branded a terrorist organisation, of planning to foment trouble, in particular among “the masses and workers.”
Security forces have cracked down on attempts to mark the anniversary of the January 25 uprising that toppled president Hosni Mubarak, particularly since 2013, when the military overthrew his Islamist successor.
The arrests come as Egypt also faces a growing Daesh-affiliated militant insurgency, which the government says is allied to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Eight policemen were killed in an attack on Monday by a “terrorist group” on a security checkpoint in the New Valley in south-western Egypt.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The attack is the second in a week targeting Egyptian security forces.
Last week, eight policemen were killed in a militant attack on a checkpoint in volatile north Sinai.
Egypt has seen a spate of attacks mainly against security forces since the army’s 2013 toppling of Islamist president Mohammad Mursi following massive street protests against his rule.
A radical group loyal to Daesh has claimed most of the attacks.
