Egypt’s main opposition group, the Muslim Brotherhood, has said 6001 of its members were arrested during the past year. All have been released since, except for 37 who remain in detention.

Egyptian authorities closed 106 economic establishments and confiscated 26 cars belonging to Brotherhood members, Abdel Moneim Abdel Maqsoud, Muslim Brotherhood lawyer, said in a statement on Tuesday.

A total of 44433 students affiliated with the group and enrolled in 16 universities were assaulted. Of that number 451 were expelled, and 1422 excluded from student union elections, said Abdel Maqsoud. A further 1665 have been subject to further investigations, and 895 excluded from university dormitories.

Among members arrested last year were Mahmoud Ezzat, the Muslim Brotherhood deputy, and other lead figures including Essam al-Erian, Mohie Hamed, Abdel Rahman al-Bar and Osama Nasr Eddin.

Members were arrested mainly in connection with participation in Shura Council midterm elections as well as parliamentary elections, Abdel Maqsoud explained, referring to the government’s desire to limit the group’s activity and block it from political participation.

The statement mentioned that Sharqiya Governorate, located in the Nile Delta, had the lion’s share of those members arrested--781--followed by Alexandria, where 467 were arrested, while just 50 members were arrested in the North Sinai governorate, north east of Egypt.

Many Muslim Brotherhood leaders were also banned from traveling abroad in 2010, including Mahdy Akef, former Muslim Brotherhood supreme guide, and Essam al-Erian, another prominent figure, according to Abdel Maqsoud.

Translated from the Arabic Edition