Egypt Arrests 22 Militants Said to Be Planning Bomb Attacks

The Egyptian government Wednesday arrested a group of 22 Islamic militants that it said was planning bomb attacks on tourist targets, a gas pipeline near Cairo and Muslim and Christian religious leaders.

The opposition Muslim Brotherhood said the government would try to use the report to extend emergency laws set to expire in June after almost 25 years in force.

The laws enable Egyptian authorities to detain people indefinitely without charge or trial, transfer civilians to military courts and limit public gatherings and protests.

The Interior Ministry said the underground organization, which called itself the Victorious Group, had 22 members, all male, in suburbs northeast and south of the capital. They included 10 students, a preacher, an electrician, a restaurateur and the owner of a computer shop, the ministry said.