generalspeaking

No One Is Backing Down

"From what I can see, he was beaten in the back, neck, knees and testicles. I do not have access to X-rays here, but my clinical diagnosis is that he has a fractured patella (kneecap), and I have applied a cylinder cast.
"There are a lot of shotgun and rifle wounds and contusions. I cannot say how many have been hurt and killed, but it is many."
Surgeon Ahmed el-Hamel

It's the classic story of each side having a narrative that reflects what they saw, heard and felt in the same situation, but each gives their impression of how they were impacted, and neither story matches because each side has an agenda and carefully nurses its own very particular experience and the perceptions that arise from a situation in which they oppose one another and conflict ensues.

One thing is clear, although the Muslim Brotherhood smoothly denies they would ever entertain the idea of going down that road; instructions were given to their followers that it is time to prove their devotion to their shared ideals of an Islamist Egypt under Sharia law, and that the removal of their president, Mohammad Morsi calls for an intifada.

Again on Monday night a crowd of thousands who support the Muslim Brotherhood attempted to break their way past barbed wire into a headquarters building of the Republican Guard in Cairo, where they believe that Mohammad Morsi is being held. Their intention was to rescue him from his indignity at the hands of the invidious military who removed him from his lawful office.

And they were prepared to sacrifice themselves in the process. As things progressed, this is precisely what up to fifty of them did. The military denies all accusations of a blood-bath, insisting that their response to fire on the crowd was precipitated by some within the crowd having fired on them.

A soldier, in fact, was demonstrated to have been shot on the top of his cranium; clearly gunmen from above were sharpshooting below. Amateur video was presented with proof positive that within the crowd of Morsi supporters there were some roaming and very well armed individuals loaded for bear.

The Islamist eyewitnesses, some of them wearing their gun wounds as a result of the fighting, accused the military outright of firing with live ammunition while they prayed, resulting in a "massacre". Four hundred people were wounded. There were pools of dried blood in front of the headquarters building.

For their part, the military rejoinder was that they were left with little choice in the matter since "terrorists" in the crowd had taken the initiative and shot at the military. Two of those shot dead, in fact, were from the security forces, the remainder civilians.  "There will be a decisiveness against outlaws, according to the rule of law", a news conference heard from an army spokesman.

Protesters, even more furious now, scream at soldiers standing behind barbed wire in front of the Republican Guard headquarters. They are more than ever prepared to sacrifice themselves as martyrs. "This is our blood, and we must now avenge our blood", claimed Mohammed Hamza, a mechanical engineer.

Tear gas canisters were fired at the crowd. The response from Yasser Abdelshakoor, a chemist was: "Either we win or we die. More of us are coming. We are not backing down."

Labels: Chaos, Conflict, Crisis Politics, Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, July 10, 2013