In Egypt, prominent political activists and opposition figures have been arrested on Thursday after they called for a referendum on Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s government.
The house of the former Assistant to Egyptian Foreign Minister Masoum Marzouk, has been stormed by Egyptian security forces who took the diplomat to an undisclosed location, according to activists on social networking sites.
Thursday’s string of arrests include financier, political economy analyst and activist Raed Salama, Helwan University Geology Professor and member of the March 9 Movement for the Independence of Universities Yehia al-Qazzaz, and political activist Sameh Seoudi.
No specific charges had yet been laid against the men, but they were arrested on the orders of Egypt’s public prosecutor, according to local media.
A vocal critic of the current regime, Masoum Marzouk launched a political initiative last July, calling for a referendum on the continuation of the current regime headed by Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
The suggested roadmap of his initiative included the suspension of the Constitution and dissolution of Parliament and the transfer of power to a transitional council for a period of three years.
Marzouk held a diplomatic post under the country’s first democratically elected President Mohamed Morsi, who was deposed by the army led by el-Sisi, following mass street protests against his rule.
Egyptian authorities have jailed thousands of Sisi’s opponents and critics in recent years.