Update: Prosecution reverses release order for 25 protesters

After ordering the release of 25 protesters arrested during Friday's demonstrations, Qasr al-Nil police station reversed its decision and referred them to national security for investigation, their lawyer Mokhtar Mounir told Mada Masr.

Mounir said Qasr al-Nil police station refused to put the release order into effect before the prosecution changed its decision three hours later. 

All other protesters arrested during Friday demonstrations, that lawyers are aware of, have now been released, except a group in Alexandria, Mounir added. Approximately 94 protesters were released from Qasr al-Nil Police Station, 29 from Abdeen, and 10 from Dokki, according to Mounir. 

A protest that drew 1,500 people to the Journalists Syndicate in Cairo ended Friday evening when Central Security Forces fired teargas to disperse demonstrators. 

The stand in front of the Journalists Syndicate was one of several demonstrations held nationwide on Friday in protest over the transfer of sovreign control of the Red Sea islands Tiran and Sanafir, located at the entrance of the Gulf of Aqaba, to Saudi Arabia. There were also large protests on Talaat Harb Street and Champolion Street in downtown Cairo, according to eyewitnesses.

Earlier Friday an agreement was negotiated with security forces to allow protesters to safely exit the area in front of the syndicate. Police defied the agreement and fired teargas into the crowd, with members of the April 6 Youth Movement reporting security forces assaulted and arrested protesters who remained in the area.

Although the protest in front of the Journalists Syndicate was scheduled to begin at 4 pm, people began to gather at the syndicate from 1 pm, after security forces dispersed earlier protests in Mohandiseen. Police subsequently blocked the entrances to Ramses Street, 26 July Street and Champolion Street, according to a Mada Masr reporter at the scene. 

Protesters chanted, “Down with military rule. They sold our land to Saudi Arabia,” and prominent human rights lawyer Khaled Ali led a chant of, "Egypt is our country, and is not for sale."

The April 6 Youth Movement called for protesters to gather in front of the Journalists Syndicate in downtown Cairo. They asked protesters not to bring signs displaying factional affiliations.

“Let today be a new beginning. More important than slogans, parties, political shouting, is that we go down today and say I am here. I am still here and I have an opinion, a voice and worth. The January revolution still lives and its legacy is still within us, despite everything that has happened,” the group urged.

Although protesters rallied around the transfer of the islands to Saudi Arabia, many also aired other grievances during what were the first protests of this scale in years. A banner was raised bearing the image of Coptic martyr Mina Daniel, who was killed by security forces in 2011, as were banners of Giulio Regeni, the Italian PhD researcher who was recently killed in Egypt. Others chanted in support of political prisoners and jailed actvists. 

The Interior Ministry reported that Central Security Forces arrested 14 protesters. Journalist Heba Farouk Mahfouz told Mada Masr police were arresting people who were leaving the syndicate protest via Ramses Street.

“Security forces lined up on the street leading to the syndicate. They divided us, there was a huge protest in front of the syndicate, and there was another huge one on Champolion Street, and on Talaat Harb there was also a large crowd,” she said.  

Central Security Forces arrested protesters on Talaat Harb Street using minibuses, political activist Asmaa Mahfouz reported. They arrested six activists, including Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights lawyer Mohamed Hanafy and transferred them to a central security station in Ismailia, the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression stated.

An eyewitness told Mada Masr that around 2,000 people also marched against the island transfer on Mostafa Mahmoud Street in Mohandiseen. The demonstration began after Friday prayers in front of Mostafa Mahmoud Mosque. Protesters marched in the direction of Tahrir Square, prompting security forces to fire teargas into the crowd, according to eyewitnesses.  

The Popular Socialist Alliance in Alexandria also reported that security forces dispersed protests in the Ibrahima district of Alexandria using teargas and arrested several members of the alliance, including Mona al-Masry and Reham Senkar.

Police also dispersed protests in Mansoura's central square and arrested a number of activists.

Ahead of the protests, many social media users expressed support for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. “All of us are one hand with Sisi,” was a top trending hashtag on Twitter. But at the start of Friday’s protests the hashtag “Friday of the Land” overtook the pro-Sisi hashtag, expressing support for Egypt’s control of the islands.

The Ministry of Interior attempted to discourage protests in a statement issued on Thursday, urging, “The ministry calls on citizens not to heed such calls, and warns against any attempts to deviate from legitimacy.” The ministry claimed it had received reports that the Muslim Brotherhood was calling for protests to incite chaos and to cause conflict between security forces and citizens.

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Note: One of the updates to this article stated that 25 protesters were released Saturday evening from Qasr al-Aini police station. While it is true there was an order given for their release, this was later revoked and they remain in custody, according to their lawyers.