By Joseph Mayton
Bikya Masr
"CAIRO: Egyptian activists have announced they would remain in Cairo’s Tahrir
Square until President Mohamed Morsi withdraws his presidential decree that
ostensibly grants him unlimited power.
The National Assembly for Change has urged other political groups, parties
and movements, to join the sit-in in Tahrir as a show of force against what they
called a power grab that places Morsi above the rule of law.
Around a dozen tents have been erected in the center of the square by early
morning Saturday and protesters appear determined to push on with their
demonstration until Morsi makes changes.
The Assembly said it is disappointed by the recent moves made by Morsi
concerning the drafting of the constitution and said they would not stand by and
allow the president to take as much power as ousted President Hosni Mubarak had
until he was ousted in a popular uprising in January 2011.
Day of Rage turns to day of clashes
Over
170 Egyptian protesters have been injured in ongoing violence in
downtown Cairo on Qasr el-Aini street leading to the iconic Tahrir Square, the
ministry of health reported.
Activists and field hospital officials believe the number to be dramatically
higher.
According to volunteer doctors at field hospitals scattered around the
frontlines, the injuries consist mainly of tear gas inhalation, however many of
those being wounded have “been shot by rubber bullets.”
The violence, which is the continuation of the previous four days, increased
in dramatic fashion on Friday afternoon, following anger over President Mohamed
Morsi’s constitutional declarations that activists say has left the country in
the hands of the ultra-conservatives and silences those who fought for freedom
during the January 2011 uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak.
According to the ministry of interior’s Facebook page, Minister Ahmed Ibrahim
reportedly ordered police officers to be “patient” and “to work” with the
different revolutionary powers. He also said on state television that no tear
gas had been fired into Tahrir Square, where tens of thousands have gathered
into the evening, saying they will not leave and have begun
an open-ended sit-in
demanding change in the country.
The ministry said that police
arrested 210 protesters, 85 of whom were
transferred to the prosecution’s office and are being held pending investigation
for 15 days, and 45 under aged youth were released and had been given to the
custody of their parents.
Morsi, for his part, spoke to the nation on Friday afternoon as violence
spiraled into chaos in downtown Cairo, telling the country that “thugs” were
responsible for the violence. State television also reported that nobody was in
Tahrir Square, which online activists said was
the same tactic used by the
Mubarak government on January 25, 2011, when protests that eventually ousted him
from power erupted.
Many believe this could be
the beginning of a second uprising that is already
demanding the end of Morsi’s rule.
Both makeshift hospitals inside al-Dobarah church and Tal’at Harb street both
confirmed the arrival of people shot with rubber bullets. doctors said following
an early evening attack that Bikyamasr.com saw 8 protesters arrive with
rubber
bullet wounds near Qasr el-Aini street, while doctors in Tala’at Harb said about
7 cases were reported......."
