Police arrest senior Islamist Al-Beltagy (original) (raw)

Mohamed Al-Beltagy speaks in a pro-Morsi rally in May 2013 (DNE File Photo)

AFP – Police arrested senior Muslim Brotherhood politician Mohamed Al-Beltagy on Thursday, state media and police officials said.

Beltagy, who had issued defiant video recordings in hiding, was the latest Brotherhood leader detained in a wide-ranging crackdown on the Islamist movement.

A former member of parliament, he became one of the most vociferous opponents of the popularly backed military coup that toppled Islamist president Mohamed Morsi on July 3.

He was arrested in a village near Cairo, state television reported.

Police had already arrested the Brotherhood’s supreme guide Mohamed Badie and much of the senior leadership.

Badie and his deputies are standing trial on charges of involvement in the murder of protesters who stormed the Brotherhood’s headquarters on June 30.