Voting restrictions observed in Egypt

CAIRO, Egypt — Egyptian election observers said Saturday that there was no letup in harassment of opposition candidates on the eve of parliamentary elections, which critics say are little more than a tool for tightening the government’s grip and burying dissent.

Meanwhile, only 10 percent of those who applied were granted permits to watch the voting at polling stations, and those who got them will be under tight restrictions, said rights activist Bahey-eldin Hassan.

For the government of 82-year-old President HosniMubarak, today’s elections are a chance to roll back the opposition bloc in parliament and silence opponents - especially the fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood. For weeks, police and armed gangs have broken up Brotherhood events.

Over the weekend, authorities arrested 22 more members of the Muslim Brotherhood, a banned group that nonetheless remains Egypt’s largest and best-organized rival to Mubarak’s ruling National Democratic Party. Running as independents, Brotherhood members won a fifth of the seats in the 2005 vote.