Cairo hit back at Washington on Friday for issuing an apparent warning in favour of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood by voicing concern over a "campaign of arrests" ahead of municipal elections scheduled for April 8. On Wednesday, the U.S. said it was "concerned by a continuing campaign of arrests in Egypt of individuals who are opponents of the current governing party and are involved in the upcoming local elections," said White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.
"These comments reflect a lack of understanding of Egypt's political reality," Egyptian foreign ministry spokesman Hossam Zaki said in a statement, cited by AFP.
Egypt's government has recently intensified its crackdown against the Muslim Brotherhood. The movement's deputy supreme guide Mohammed Habib told AFP on Thursday that at least 90 percent of its candidates were prevented from registering for the elections .
