Egypt police shoot dead 2 Brotherhood leaders

By Rabia al-Sokkary

CAIRO (AA) – Two leaders of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood group were shot dead by Egyptian security forces south of Cairo, the country’s interior ministry said.

In a Tuesday statement, the ministry said Mohamed Kamal, 61, was killed along with Yasser Shehata in a shootout late Monday in Cairo’s Bassateen neighborhood after a police raid on their apartment.

The ministry claimed Kamal was the founder of the Brotherhood’s armed wing and blamed him for a spate of attacks on security forces, including last year’s assassination of prosecutor-general Hisham Barakat.

But London-based Brotherhood leader Mohamed Soudan cast doubts on the circumstances of Kamal’s killing.

“Authorities announced the death of Kamal and Shehata shortly after local media reported that they had been arrested,” Soudan told Anadolu Agency.

“This means that both leaders had been liquidated,” he said.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s social media accounts reported Monday that Kamal had disappeared, but did not provide any more information.

Egypt has been roiled by turmoil since the military deposed Mohamed Morsi, the country’s first freely elected president, in a 2013 coup.

Ever since, Egyptian security forces have launched a harsh crackdown on the Brotherhood, killing hundreds and detaining thousands for allegedly inciting violence.