Anti-regime activists divided as police crack down on protests

With protests spreading in Cairo and other cities, anti-military protesters are divided on whether or not common ground can be found between secular activists and Muslim Brotherhood supporters.

Activist and blogger Amr Ezzat told Mada Masr that he's against any movement that supports or stands by the Muslim Brotherhood and their quest for legitimacy.

Ezzat only participates in actions that have nothing to do with the Brotherhood or movements with an Islamist political agenda. This means he supported demonstrations on the anniversary of the 2012 Mohammad Mahmoud clashes and protests against the arrest of activists who last week called for the end of military trials for civilians.

But he believes that the earlier argument that the Muslim Brotherhood will benefit from street movements and opposition to state policies is no longer true.

“A constitution is being passed now and there are attempts to control the public sphere and deepen the historic tragedy of state violations against human rights, and this calls for action,” Ezzat said.

The controversy within the student movement lies with the heavy presence of Islamists in universities, according to Ezzat. Their numbers enable them to “hijack” other civil movements calling for human rights, he said.

"Meanwhile, state and interior ministry actions pushed all revolutionary forces into a corner where action has to be taken against their violations of human rights and campus sanctity," he said.

Ezzat believes the solution could be in uniting all the small movements under one front, a front that has a clear political orientation distinguishing itself from the political agenda of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Tamarod co-founder and media spokesperson Hassan Shahin expressed disappointment over the presence of Rabea signs in Tahrir Square. The Rabea signs indicate support for the Muslim Brotherhood and former President Mohamed Morsi.

Tamarod has recently spoken out against actions by the interim, military-led government. It supported, however, the June 30 public protests called by the military and the July 3 removal from power of Morsi which followed.

Shahin wrote on his Facebook page: “Anyone who says the MB are with revolutionary fronts in Tahrir Square [to revive] the Jan 25 revolution is an idiot.” He added, "The MB hijacked the revolution and they want to steal your efforts again.”

According to Shahin, revolutionary forces would never oppose the people, and “the MB are a main enemy of Egyptian people.”

He continued: “To anyone who stands by the Brotherhood and claims to be revolutionary, there’s a difference between opposing a regime at fault and supporting terroristic militias who don’t understand the concept of a homeland and merely follows US orders, and I mean the MB by that.”