Eight killed in Egyptian elections violence
Egypt, Politics, 12/8/2005

Voting centers closed its doors on Wednesday evening in conclusion of the runoff round of the last Egyptian parliamentary elections which witnessed harassment against voters and vast acts of violence that resulted in killing at least seven persons and wounding other 600 as well as detaining scores by the security forces.

In a statement, the Egyptian ministry of interior stressed the killing of two persons and injuring a third in Dumiat governorate during the runoff phase of the third round of the elections. The ministry of interior accused the Muslim Brothers of firing bullets from roofs of houses.

The statement indicated that the security forces detained some 80 persons during the election day, and is after the leading figure Hassan Muhammad al-Haiwan who was accused by the statement as having tried to bring in amounts of weapons in order to support a Muslim Brothers candidate. The Egyptian ministry of interior denied the interference of the security forces in the election process operation.

The spokesman for the Muslim Brothers, Issam al-Aryan, said that the two killed persons of the supporters of his group and that they were killed during confrontations with the police because of preventing the voters from having access to the voting centers. Moreover, witnesses indicated that the security forces opened fire at the demonstrators in the region.

However, the Egyptian organization for human rights indicated the killing of a third voters in Dumiat, but this could not be confirmed from a medical source.

Meantime, the chairman of judges club in Egypt Zakaria Abdul Aziz said in press statements that violations were many in the runoff of the third and last round of the parliamentary elections which witnessed a bloody end by the killing of 8 persons and injuring of other 600, 20 of them are in critical health conditions. Al-Jazeera satellite TV quoted Abdul Aziz as saying that one representative in one of the elections circles attacked a judge.

The chairman of the Egyptian Judges Club noted that "rioters" entered certain committees and placed fraudulent votes, noting that he will announce that to all in public about these violations in a press conference he will hold later today.

Previous Stories:
  Six Egyptian electoral circles elections suspended   (12/8/2005)
  Muslim Brothers doubt on results of Egyptian elections   (12/3/2005)
  On the results of the Egyptian elections   (12/2/2005)
  Objections of judges to Egyptian elections   (12/2/2005)

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