Protests over student detainees as Egypt lifts state of emergency
Muslim Brotherhood holds demonstrations after Al-Azhar students sentenced to 17 years in prison.
Supporters of ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi hold posters of the ‘four-fingered salute’ during a protest in Cairo, Egypt, 15 November 2013. EPA/KHALED ELFIQI
Hundreds of supporters of ousted Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi gathered at the presidential palace on Friday. The Muslim Brotherhood called for the protests after 12 “pro-Morsi supporters” were sentenced to 17 years in prison. The demonstrators allegedly took part in a violent student-led protest at the headquarters of Al Azhar, one of the leading religious institutions in Sunni Islam.
Friday’s protests come one day after the lifting of a curfew and three-month state of emergency. However, the interim government is reportedly set to pass a restrictive protest law, which Human Rights Watch has said “would effectively give the police carte blanche to ban protest in Egypt”.
Published On 15 Nov 2013