All calm at Brotherhood sit-ins despite MOI threats of dispersal

The Muslim Brotherhood sit-ins at Rabea al-Adaweya Mosque and Nahda Square were still intact as of early Monday afternoon, despite the Interior Ministry’s announcement on Sunday that the demonstrations would be dispersed at dawn.

The sit-ins have been in place for over a month as Brotherhood members and sympathizers demand the return of former President Mohamed Morsi, who was removed from office by the Armed Forces on July 3 following mass nationwide protests calling for his ouster.

The Cabinet recently gave the Interior Ministry a mandate to “end terrorism” by any means necessary. The pro-Morsi demonstrators have been accused of carrying arms and fueling violence in the surrounding areas.

The Ministry of Interior repeatedly said that the dispersal of the sit-ins would be gradual, starting with a series of warnings, followed by a siege preventing the delivery of supplies. The ministry claimed it would only resort to violence if provoked by the demonstrators.

However, at Rabea al-Adaweya, nothing suggested that a security advance was nearing its gates early Monday morning. Families and children were asleep at dawn and no particular fortification plans had been made, aside from the usual security precautions put in place by the protesters.

Meanwhile, Muslim Brotherhood supporters carried on with their marches on Monday, with groups protesting in downtown Cairo and around Ramses Square.

The privately-owned Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper reported rock throwing between protesters and Ramses area residents during the march. Local were allegedly angered when the pro-Morsi demonstrators blocked the road.

The march was supposed to head to Rabea al-Adaweya, but some protesters said that they changed their plan, and would head to the office of the public prosecutor to protest the charges levied against Muslim Brotherhood leaders.