Suez protester shot Friday by police has died

Protester Bassem Mohsen, who was shot with a pellet in the head in Friday’s protests, died Sunday, his friends announced from a Cairo hospital.

Mohsen was allegedly shot in the head Friday by police forces during clashes with supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Suez against the military-backed interim government.

The young protester was referred to intensive care in critical condition in Suez before he was later transferred to Cairo, where he underwent critical brain surgery to remove the pellet shots. His friends said he would need 48 hours to recover from surgery, but he died less than 24 hours after the operation.

Mohsen opposed interim military rule in 2011, losing one of his eyes in the Mohamed Mahmoud clashes of November 2011, and undergoing a military trial.

Supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi brutally beat him in late 2012, when they stormed an opposition protest in Tahrir Square.

He was active in collecting signatures in Suez to force Morsi from power in June 2013, as part of the Tamarod (Rebel) campaign.

Friday’s demonstrations, during which Mohsen was shot, were protesting police brutality.