Egypt: On anniversary, end to street violence seems nowhere in sight
On Saturday, the anniversary of the fall of former President Hosni Mubarak, Tahrir Square was filled with pro-government supporters. Seven people were killed as anti-government demonstrators clashed with police.
An Egyptian girl holds a poster of Egypt's Defense Minister, Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, in Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the 2011 uprising, in Cairo, Egypt, Saturday. Egyptian riot police have fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi protesting as the country marks the third anniversary of the 2011 uprising.
Hassan Ammar/AP
Cairo
Seven people were killed during anti-government marches on Saturday while thousands rallied in support of the聽-led authorities, underlining聽's volatile political fissures three years after the fall of autocrat president聽.
Security forces lobbed teargas and fired in the air to try to prevent demonstrators opposed to the government from reaching聽, the symbolic heart of the 2011 uprising that toppled the former air force commander.
Instead of commemorating Mubarak's overthrow, a large number of Egyptians gathered in Tahrir to pledge their support for the聽聽chief who ousted the country's first freely-elected president last year.
The chanting for General聽聽underscored the prevailing desire for a decisive military man they count on to end the political turmoil that has gripped聽聽since the 2011 Arab Spring revolution and crippled the economy.
But an end to street violence seemed nowhere in sight with the sound of tear gas canisters being fired echoing through downtown聽聽as police confronted anti-government protesters.
Four protesters were killed in different parts of the capital, where armoured personnel carriers were deployed to try and keep order, and anyone entering Tahrir had to pass through a metal detector.
In the southern town of聽, two people were killed in clashes between Mursi supporters and security forces, said Brigadier General聽, director of criminal investigations in the聽.
A woman was killed in聽's second city of Alexandria during clashes between supporters of Mursi and security forces.
聽toppled President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in July after mass protests against what critics called his mismanagement and increasingly arbitrary rule, triggering a confrontation with the veteran Islamist movement that has hit investment and tourism hard.
The general, who served as head of military intelligence under Mubarak, is expected to announce his candidacy for the presidency soon and likely to win by a landslide in elections, expected within six months.
Several leading politicians have indicated they would not run for president if聽聽does, highlighting his dominance and the barren political landscape that has emerged since Mubarak's fall. The most vocal critics of the new order - the Brotherhood - have been driven underground.
罢丑别听聽congratulated Egyptians on the anniversary of the 2011 uprising and said it would help people build on the gains of what it calls the June 30 Revolution, a reference to the street unrest that prompted the聽to oust Mursi.
Tensions have been smouldering anew since a wave of deadly bombings killed six people in聽聽on Friday. An al Qaeda-inspired group, based in the lawless Sinai Peninsula, claimed responsibility, according to the SITE monitoring organisation.
Early on Saturday a bomb exploded near a聽聽police academy. No one was hurt, said the聽.
In Tahrir, the mood on Saturday felt more like a campaign rally for聽聽than a commemoration of the 18-day revolt that Egyptians at the time hoped would bring democratic, civilian government to the Arab world's most populous country.
Huge banners, posters and T-shirts displayed images of聽聽in his trademark dark sunglasses at Saturday's rally. Several hundred people chanted slogans in support of the general.
A woman named Heba dismissed the 2011 uprising and said the important revolution came when Egyptians held mass protests that led to the聽聽takeover last July. "I'm here to support聽," she said.
TEAR GAS AND BIRDSHOT
Others didn't have the chance to express their views. Police fired live rounds in the air to disperse about 1,000 anti-government protesters in聽's Mohandiseen district and at two other marches in downtown.
Some of the demonstrators were supporters of the Brotherhood, while others were liberal activists. Witnesses said police also fired tear gas and birdshot at a crowds of activists moving toward Tahrir for an anti-government rally.
, a university student, said he was protesting against "military rule and the thugs of the聽".
At one rally, the crowd yelled "the people want the downfall of the regime!" - a common chant during the 18-day revolt that ousted Mubarak - before running from tear gas.
Dozens of anti-government protesters were arrested in聽's second city Alexandria, security sources said.
When he removed Mursi,聽聽promised a political roadmap that would lead to free and fair elections.
But the聽听蝉补测蝉听聽and his allies in the government have blood on their hands and accuse them of undermining democratic gains made since Mubarak's downfall.
Security forces have killed up to 1,000聽聽supporters and put the movement's top leaders in jail. The Brotherhood, which renounced violence in the 1970s, has been declared a terrorist group.
But the tough measures have failed to stabilise聽, which is of great strategic importance because of its peace treaty with聽聽and control over the聽.
Islamist militants based in the Sinai Peninsula have stepped up attacks against security forces since聽toppled Mursi. Hundreds have been killed.
The security crackdown has been extended to secular-minded liberals, including ones who played a key role in the 2011 uprising. Human rights groups have accused the Egyptian authorities of quashing dissent and using excessive force, calling state violence since Mursi's ouster unprecedented.
Still, many Egyptians choose to look the other way and extend their full support to聽. "We are here to support聽," said a man in Tahrir who only gave his first name, Mahmoud. "聽is going to save the country," said his wife.
Additional reporting by Reuters TV; Writing by聽