Egypt court bans Mubarak-era leaders from running in elections

Source: Reuters


CAIRO (Reuters) - An Egyptian court on Tuesday banned the leaders of autocratic ex-president Hosni Mubarak's party from running in any coming elections but did not list any names, drawing complaints about a lack of clarity that could blunt the move's impact.

Mubarak's National Democratic Party won all elections during his 30-year rule, mostly by rigging outcomes, marginalising any credible challengers and suppressing dissidents, but was dissolved in 2011 after the popular uprising that toppled him.

But Egypt's democratic transition since has run aground, critics say, by the banning of the Muslim Brotherhood after the army's ouster of freely elected Islamist president Mohamed Mursi in 2013 and broad crackdown on Islamist and liberal opposition.

A presidential election to be held his month is widely expected to be won by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, from the same military establishment which has dominated Egyptian politics for six decades.


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