CAIRO: Muslim Brotherhood leaders say they are still unaware of the whereabouts of 56 of the group's members arrested during a Cairo protest in support of Gaza Palestinians Friday. According to Mahmoud Ezzat, secretary general of the Muslim Brotherhood, the group has not received word that those arrested have been presented to the prosecutor's office or that they have been formally charged. "The least of their rights has not been granted, said Ezzat, explaining that the police have not notified the detainees' families of their whereabouts. According to the Associated Press, Egyptian authorities confirmed the arrests, but said only 40 people were detained in Cairo. The arrests had taken place during two rallies organized by the Brotherhood in Nasr City. The protestors were demanding that Egypt open the Rafah crossing and denounce the Israeli offensive on Gaza. "They were sending a message and a warning to the Zionists and also to our leaders, telling them to take appropriate action, said Ezzat. However, National Democratic Party MP Mohamed Kwaitah emphasized that the Rafah crossing has been open to humanitarian and medical cases. An indiscriminate opening of the crossing would aid Israeli plans to wash its hands of the Palestinian problem by allowing Gazans to settle in the Sinai, he said. Meanwhile, the Brotherhood also organized protests in Beni Suef, Minya and Sharqeya in a display of solidarity with Gaza, said a Brotherhood statement. According to the statement, a total of 70 Brotherhood members have been detained across the country either during or on their way to these protests. Kwaitah described the MB protests as a kind of "self-promotion. However Ezzat said it would be unnatural for the Egyptian people not to react to the situation in Gaza. "The Egyptian people are a vibrant people, he said. "It is natural for them to react this way to this issue.
