By REUTERS
CAIRO - Egyptian justice officials and police raided offices of 17 non-government organizations on Thursday, including two prominent US-based pro-democracy groups that run programs training political parties.The official MENA news agency said 17 "civil society organizations" had been targeted as part of an investigation into foreign funding of such groups."The public prosecutor has searched 17 civil society organizations, local and foreign, as part of the foreign funding case," official news agency MENA cited the prosecutor's office as saying. "The search is based on evidence showing violation of Egyptian laws including not having permits."The raids targeted local offices of the US-based International Republican Institute (IRI) and National Democratic Institute (NDI), among others, said a security source and employees at some of the organizations.
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