Egypt Holds Runoff Vote

Egyptian opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei says youth who spearheaded the country's uprising have been 'decimated' at the polls.

Runoff elections are currently under way in Egypt.

It's the first democratic election since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak in February.

Fifty two seats for individual candidates will be contested in two days of voting, starting on December 5.

They will take up a third of the 498 elected seats in the lower house once two more rounds of the complicated voting process end in January.

Results from last week's first round of voting showed the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood winning the most votes, followed by the ultra-conservative Islamist Salafis.

Nobel laureate and Egypt's top reform leader Mohammed ElBaradei said the youth behind the country's uprising had been "decimated" by Islamists.

He also expressed concern about the rise of hard-line religious elements advocating extremist ideas like banning women from driving.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on Egypt's future leaders to preserve a 1979 peace treaty between the two states.

compiled from agency reports