Egypt: Brotherhood minister arrested over terrorism

Cairo: Egyptian police had arrested a government minister in the era of the now-banned Muslim Brotherhood, on terrorism charges, security sources said.

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Hatem Abdul Latif, who served as the transport minister under the now-toppled Islamist president Mohammed Morsi, had been caught on the outskirts of Cairo, the sources added.

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“The accused is a cadre in the terrorist Brotherhood group and has maintained contacted with its leaders abroad. He has been involved in plans aimed at destabilising security in the country,” the semi-official newspaper Akhbar Al Youm quoted a security source as saying.

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“The accused will appear before the specialised prosecution on charges of joining an outlawed group aimed at inciting chaos and committing acts of violence and sabotage,” the source added.

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Abdul Latif’s arrest comes days after Egyptian authorities caught two prominent businessmen on suspicion of belonging to the Brotherhood and financing its anti-state activities.

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In late 2013, Egypt designated the Brotherhood as a terrorist organisation after a spate of violent attacks unleashed in the country following the Islamist group’s removal from power after massive street protests against its divisive rule.