100s protest against Sharon
2005-02-08 16:38
Cairo - Hundreds of Egyptians staged demonstrations on Tuesday in protest at Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's visit to their country for a peace summit, with protesters burning Israeli flags.
"The blood of martyrs will not be shed in vain," chanted about 1 000 protesters at Cairo University, not far from the Israeli embassy in Cairo, as they set fire to the Star of David.
Black-clad security forces and baton-wielding riot police ensured the demonstration, led by Islamist students, remained on campus.
Sharon was invited by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for a landmark summit at Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh with Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas, also attended by Jordan's King Abdullah II.
Abbas and Sharon called an end to the four-year conflict between their peoples.
The protesters at Cairo University called on Egypt's attorney general to issue an arrest warrant for Sharon, charging he was a "war criminal" with Arab blood on his hands.
"Enough, enough," they chanted.
They also denounced increased diplomatic and economic contacts between Egypt and the Jewish state.
A protest involving scores of journalists was also held at the union's headquarters in downtown Cairo, including a two-hour sit-in.
"Get out Sharon," they cried, waving anti-Sharon placards.