Massive demos expected in Egypt
2013-01-25 11:09
Cairo - Huge demonstrations were expected in Egypt on Friday
on the second anniversary of the revolution that ousted Hosni Mubarak and
brought in an Islamist government, as political tensions simmer and economic
woes bite.
Demonstrators were making their way to Cairo's Tahrir
Square, where some had already spent the night, after police clashed on Thursday
with protesters who tried to dismantle a wall of concrete blocks closing a
street leading to the square.
Some demonstrators hurled rocks at riot police who responded
with tear gas grenades. The interior ministry said five policemen were injured
and appealed to demonstrators to avoid confrontation with the security forces.
The secular-leaning opposition has called for mass protests
against President Mohammed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood from which he hails,
using the same slogan that brought Egypt to its feet in 2011: "Bread,
freedom, social justice."
"Go out into the squares to finally achieve the objectives
of the revolution," opposition leader and former head of the UN's atomic
agency Mohamed ElBaradei wrote on his Twitter account.
Friday's demonstrators were set to gather at Tahrir Square,
iconic birthplace of the 2011 revolution, and in front of the presidential
palace, where anti-Morsi rallies last December erupted into deadly clashes with
Islamist supporters.
Rallies were also due to be staged elsewhere, notably in
Egypt's second city Alexandria, and the authorities have prepared for a heavy
security presence, an official said.
The Muslim Brotherhood has not officially called for its own
rallies, instead marking the anniversary by launching a charitable and social
initiative dubbed "Together we will build Egypt".
Threat of violence
Morsi urged Egyptians to spend the anniversary in a
"peaceful and civilised way", in a speech on Thursday to mark the
birthday of the Prophet Mohammed.
But the threat of violence remained, ahead of a court
verdict due on Saturday in the trial of dozens of defendants over the worst
football disaster in Egyptian history.
More than 70 people were killed in Port Said in February
last year during clashes in the Suez Canal city between fans of home side
Al-Masry and diehard supporters Cairo's Al-Ahly, known as Ultras.
Al-Ahly supporters warned of violent protests and a
"new revolution" if Saturday's verdict goes against them.
After the seismic political changes of 2011, the Arab
world's most populous nation is struggling to find a balance between a
leadership that boasts the legitimacy of the ballot box and opponents who
accuse the Islamists of betraying the goals of the revolution that brought them
to power.
Egypt is also in the throes of an economic crisis as foreign
investment and tourism revenues dwindle, the Egyptian pound stands at its lowest
level against the dollar and a budget deficit shows no sign of recovery.
