CAIRO: Fears are growing among the families of the victims who were killed on Sunday after clashes with the army that the death reports issued by the hospital are not truthful and does not state the real causes of death. The family of one victim, Mina Said, said they received a report stating that the cause of death are “bruises from a dispute,” while he was shot dead by army forces outside of the National Radio and Television building, also known as Maspero, on Sunday night. Thousands have gathered since Monday morning outside the Coptic Hospital in the Ramsis area of the Egyptian capital, waiting for the release of the bodies inside for the burial. Several bodies in the hospital are being kept in horrific conditions in a small room with no air-conditioning and the bodies are stacked on the floor, Bikyamasr.com can confirm. Many of the families had to run outside and buy large blocks of ice to keep the bodies cool. They also purchased cleaning supplies to clean the bloody corpses and the floor. A medical source from the hospital told Bikyamasr.com that they “are preparing the bodies for examination.” Amal, a 20-something woman who was present with her family waiting for the body of her uncle, told Bikyamasr.com outside the room where the bodies are kept that she, nor her family, are leaving before a truthful report emerges from the hospital. “They will not cheat us and cook up a fake report to keep the army innocent,” she added, fighting tears. The scene outside the hospital was chaotic at times, especially when the hospital refused to provide information on the procedures that would be taken. At the Coptic Cathedral in Abbasiya, only four bodies of victims from last night's clash with the army were prayed for on Monday afternoon and are heading for burial shortly after. Many bodies remain in the Coptic Hospital, awaiting the coroner's committee to arrive and conduct an autopsy on the victims after mourning families complained that the earlier issued burial licenses hid the real reasons of death. Thousands of Egyptian remain outside the hospital protesting for the fall of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and Field Marshal Mohamed Hussien Tantawi, head of the SCAF, demanding justice for the attack that claimed the lives of 25 Copts and left over 200 injured. Rights activists and eyewitnesses say the real numbers are much higher and accused officials of trying to conceal the truth from the people. Protesters held wooden crosses and pictures of Jesus and saints and demanded a truthful report on how the victims were killed. What started out as a peaceful protest denouncing discrimination against Copts on Sunday, turned bloody after army forces opened fire at protesters upon their arrival outside of the National Radio and TV building, also known as Maspero. Copts told the story of how several military tanks chased them and ran over a number of people. Videos posted online show a number of armored vehicles driving frantically outside Maspero and hitting a number of protesters, killing some instantly. Eyewitnesses told Bikyamasr.com that they were peacefully marching towards Maspero and did not provoke the army at all and no one was armed, in contradiction to the official story told by state TV of how armed Coptic protesters attacked the military. Violence escalated when the army pleaded with people to leave their homes and “protect the armed forces from the Coptic attacks,” which drove armed conservative men out in the street and gave room to false rumors that ignited the situation even further. An injured young man, who refused to give his name for security reasons, said he was beaten and hit by an ultra- conservative men when he tried to move a dead body near downtown. The injured man, who was a sympathetic Muslim, said the conservative men were angered after hearing false rumers that Coptic youth are burning copies of the Qur'an in the street. Another man, who was suffering from head wounds in Abdel Moneim Riad Square said men “with beards” threw rocks at him and his friends from a bridge that crosses over the square, injuring several people. BM
