Student protesters remain defiant, call for march on Al-Azhar University

Clashes continued between Al-Azhar University students and security forces on Saturday, the first day of midterm examinations.

Campus protests in Cairo and other Egyptian cities marked a defiant response to the government’s Wednesday announcement that the Muslim Brotherhood is a “terrorist organization,” and Thursday’s Interior Ministry announcement that supporters of the banned group could face five-year prison terms.

In Saturday's university violence, a 19-year-old Al-Azhar student was killed and four others were injured, according to the privately owned Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper, quoting the Health Ministry.

Students Against the Coup called for a protest march to head towards Al-Azhar University on Saturday afternoon. The announcement was posted on the group’s official Facebook page early on Saturday afternoon.

The statement said that the march was being called to protest the deaths of three students, the assault of female students and the burning of university buildings. It warned: “Whoever thinks students are easy prey will get what they deserve.”   

Students gathered in front of Al-Azhar’s Faculty of Commerce early Saturday to protest the holding of examinations after the arrest of dozens of students and the students deaths, according to Mohamed Atef, acting president of Al-Azhar University’s Student Union.

Atef spoke to Mada Masr on the phone, as he attempted to avoid police checkpoints near the university. As many as 60 more students were arrested on Saturday, according to the privately owned Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper. This follows the arrest of more than 200 nationwide on Friday.

Friday’s protests devolved into violent clashes in Cairo, Alexandria, Damietta, Minya, Ismailia, Suez, Fayoum, Sohag and other governorates.

In Cairo, demonstrations were concentrated in Nasr City, with Al-Azhar University as a focal point. Protesters blocked several streets in Nasr City and Haram.

Student representative Atef told Mada Masr that Saturday began with a peaceful protest at Al-Azhar University, staged two hours before the start of examinations. He said that students sitting exams were not prevented from entering the faculty.

The Interior Ministry, in a Saturday press release, described the protesting students as members of the “terroristic Muslim Brotherhood group.” It accused students of breaking into a number of faculties with shotguns to “terrorize” other students, delay exams, and obstruct teaching.

The statement claimed that students fired shotguns in the air and broke chairs,  forcing security forces to react. Atef, however, described the presence of Central Security Force inside the university as “massive.” He said that police armed with shotguns had entered the administrative building with dogs.

The police action, he said, “was not to protect students during examinations but to kill and arrest more of them.”

Atef continued: “A student died from a direct shot to the heart by a shotgun. Another student, at the Faculty of Commerce, was shot right over his left eye and four hospitals refused to receive him. He’s undergoing surgery now and is in a critical condition.”

There were conflicting accounts of how the fire broke out in the Faculty of Commerce. The Interior Ministry blamed students for setting the blaze after security forces intervened.

But Atef said students were merely taking shelter inside the building and throwing fireworks at soldiers standing outside. “The soldiers were agitated and started firing tear gas and incendiary materials at the students inside the building, which then caught fire,” he said. “Firetrucks arrived right away and extinguished the fire before it caused any severe damage.”

Despite the clashes and protests, exams continue to be held throughout Al-Azhar University. Ibrahim Hadhood, the university’s assistant dean, said that there had been only minor delays in a few faculties affected by clashes, Al-Masry Al-Youm reported.