Egypt’s former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq called on security authorities to provide an explanation for the arrest of three of his supporters, saying “the situation is serious.”Security authorities arrested Shafiq’s supporters for the upcoming presidential elections on Wednesday. Reuters cited security sources as saying that the detainees were charged with spreading false information harmful to national security. In a tweet on Saturday, Shafiq, who heads the Egyptian National Movement Party, apologized to the detainees and their families. The situation is serious and deserves further clarification as to whether there are other reasons for this detention,” Shafiq added. Shafiq’s party also issued a statement on Saturday saying the that the detainees are not members of the Egyptian National Movement.

Source: Egypt Independent December 17, 2017 10:41 UTC