Egypt’s Port Said Security building set on fire following heavy clashes
Monday, 04 March 2013
Port Said’s security building torched along with
protesters throwing petrol bombs at police under clouds of tear gas. (Al
Arabiya)
Fresh violence broke out on Monday afternoon near the security headquarters in Egypt’s canal city of of Port Said.
Footage from the scene showed the security building torched along with protesters throwing petrol bombs at police under clouds of tear gas.
A few kilometers near, protesters were also hurling stones at the Governorate’s building guarded by soldiers. Two soldier were killed following Monday’s clashes, according to Al Arabiya’s correspondent.
An army official arrived on the site in attempt to calm down protesters, but Al Arabiya’s correspondent said similar attempts failed earlier to ease tensions.
Thousands took to the streets of Port Said on Monday for the funeral of three people killed in overnight clashes with police.
The city has witnessed unrest since January when a court sentenced Port Said residents to death over football violence last year, triggering a series of protests and eventually a civil disobedience campaign.
People demonstrated against the detention of dozens of people in connection with a soccer riot last year when 70 died.
Police used tear gas to disperse a crowd that had gathered in front of a local government office. The Health Ministry said in a statement on Monday morning that 404 people had been injured.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that two of its personnel had died of bullet wounds to the neck and head.
Egypt has been in political turmoil for the last two years since a popular uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak.
The interior ministry said it decided to move prisoners from Port Said, starting with the 39 remaining defendants over the February 2012 football violence, because it wanted to avoid unrest.
The court verdict, expected next Saturday, is for the 39 defendants in a case which resulted in death sentences in January for 21 other defendants, sparking clashes that killed at least 40 people.
Residents of Port Said and other canal cities have long complained that Cairo marginalises them.
Last year’s football riot which killed 74 people, mostly supporters of a visiting Cairo team, exacerbated Port Said’s isolation, residents of the city say.
Footage from the scene showed the security building torched along with protesters throwing petrol bombs at police under clouds of tear gas.
A few kilometers near, protesters were also hurling stones at the Governorate’s building guarded by soldiers. Two soldier were killed following Monday’s clashes, according to Al Arabiya’s correspondent.
An army official arrived on the site in attempt to calm down protesters, but Al Arabiya’s correspondent said similar attempts failed earlier to ease tensions.
Thousands took to the streets of Port Said on Monday for the funeral of three people killed in overnight clashes with police.
The city has witnessed unrest since January when a court sentenced Port Said residents to death over football violence last year, triggering a series of protests and eventually a civil disobedience campaign.
People demonstrated against the detention of dozens of people in connection with a soccer riot last year when 70 died.
Police used tear gas to disperse a crowd that had gathered in front of a local government office. The Health Ministry said in a statement on Monday morning that 404 people had been injured.
The Interior Ministry said in a statement that two of its personnel had died of bullet wounds to the neck and head.
Egypt has been in political turmoil for the last two years since a popular uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak.
The interior ministry said it decided to move prisoners from Port Said, starting with the 39 remaining defendants over the February 2012 football violence, because it wanted to avoid unrest.
The court verdict, expected next Saturday, is for the 39 defendants in a case which resulted in death sentences in January for 21 other defendants, sparking clashes that killed at least 40 people.
Residents of Port Said and other canal cities have long complained that Cairo marginalises them.
Last year’s football riot which killed 74 people, mostly supporters of a visiting Cairo team, exacerbated Port Said’s isolation, residents of the city say.
Labels: Conflict, Egypt, Human Relations, Islamism, Muslim Brotherhood
posted by Pieface @ Monday, March 04, 2013
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