Prominent Egyptian political opposition leader and former presidential nominee, Ayman Nour, on Monday said he would spearhead the effort to facilitate European monitoring of parliamentary elections set for 28 November. The ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) last month rejected an EU request to monitor the poll, arguing the election is an internal affair that doesn't require foreign intervention. Head of Ghad Party, Nour said he will organize a conference on elections before 28 November in order to press for international oversight. Nour, during his visit to the European Commission headquarters in Brussels last week, said European officials also stressed the need for impartial, foreign bodies present. “The Ghad Party would organize a conference on elections ahead of 28 November, so European officials would arrive in Cairo as parliamentarians invited to attend the conference, making their presence in Cairo unrelated to elections. At the same time, they would be able to monitor balloting process closely,” Nour said. “Dolba del Moral, head of Foreign Relations at the European Commission, told me during our meeting in Brussels, Europeans are resentful of government's refusal to their requests,” Nour added. Nour told the European officials he, Mohamed ElBaradei, former UN nuclear chief and Egyptian political reformist, and MP Hamdeen Sabbahy face constitutional obstacles that prevent them from vying for the presidency against NDP candidates. In 2005 presidential elections, Nour was the first runner-up with 8% of the vote. Nour was subsequently sentenced to five years in jail in December 2005, only to be released in February 2009 for health reasons. Following his imprisonment, he was removed from the party's leadership. Ghad's headquarters in downtown Cairo was burned down last November. Nour supporters said security services were responsible.
