CAIRO: The old Egypt appears to be quickly catching up to the new Egypt. On Monday evening, the brother of two slain Egyptian “martyrs” from the January 25 revolution told ON Tv's Akher Kalam, or “Last Word,” that he has received death threats over his attempts to find justice for his murdered siblings. “I received death threats and others in the street wanting me to drop the case against the police,” Waleed al-Tahtawy told Yousri Fouda's popular program. Tahtawy's sister Hoda, 17, had been shot in the head on January 28, in Alexandria. Her wounds had forced her into a local hospital and on Sunday, she reportedly succumbed to injuries. The family and others, however, have demanded an autopsy of the body as they suspect medical negligence. The family filed a case against the police last April. “I don't know why these people who call my phone to threaten me do it. Why are they asking for my sister's body not to be examined?” he asked on the program, less than 24 hours from his sister's funeral. “I want it [examination] to be so the perpetrator gets his punishment,” he continued. He said that his sister and brother are part of a larger situation facing the families of those killed in the uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak. “I want to know why these young people are dying,” he added. “We are like the blind on the streets. We have no one to take our hand and all we get is talk,” referring to the ongoing battles between the government, the military and the families of “martyrs.” Tahtawy's brother, Ibrahim, was shot and killed on the same day Hoda received her wounds. Approximately 1,000 people were killed and thousands others injured in the 18 days of protests that began on January 25 and culminated on February 11 with Mubarak's removal from power. BM
