Egypt Arrests 4 Al-Jazeera Journalists

Looking to stop network's broadcasts

CAIRO — Egypt's interim government called an Al-Jazeera local affiliate that broadcasts in Arabic a national threat Thursday, moving closer to banning its broadcasts beamed from Qatar after the affiliate aired recordings of declarations by fugitive leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood. The Qatar-based television network said four journalists working for its English service were arrested in Cairo.

Three government ministers issued a statement saying that Al-Jazeera Mubashir Misr is operating "illegally, in violation to the profession's standards and without a permit to work in Egypt," the state-run news agency MENA reported.