CAIRO: Thousands of anti-military rule protesters marched Thursday evening from the high court in downtown Cairo to the state TV building, demanding justice over the killing of Coptic Christian protesters on October 9. The protest was called for online by a number of revolutionary movements. The march aimed to hasten bringing those responsible of killing the protesters on “Bloody Sunday” to justice after 27 people were killed and hundreds wounded when the military opened fire on the Christian protesters then. The march on Thursday started with outside the high court, where a few hundred gathered around 6 PM. Soon after a group of passersby gathered on the opposite sidewalk and began chanting for the military. They said the military and the people “are on hand.” “I am chanting for the military because the Egyptian people love them,” Said Yehia, a shop owner, told Bikyamasr.com. “The army is protecting the revolution while these guys,” he continued pointing at the anti-military protesters on the opposite side, “are members of April 6 who wish Egypt not well.” “April 6 receives money from abroad,” he added. When asked about where he stands on the Egyptian military receiving money from the United States, he said that the military uses the money for Egypt's advantage. Egypt is the second largest recipient of American aid after Israel and the government receives some $1.2 billion every year. The army had previously accused the 6 of April movement of receiving foreign funding and military training. The movement strongly denied the allegation and invited the council to go through their financial reports. The military accusations have sparked a sense of rejection from some Egyptians against the pro-democracy movement, which echoed in protests like the one on Thursday. On “Bloody Sunday,” thousands of Copts, joined by a few Muslims, marched from the residential district of Shubra to the state TV building, or Maspero, to protest the burning of a Christian house of worship in the town of Edfu, in the southern governorate of Aswan. The armed forces guarding the building attacked the protesters shot at the protesters and ran them over, killing at least 27 people and injuring hundreds. Tens of videos documenting the violence found their way online and many show clearly armored vehicles running over people and soldiers beaten and shooting at protesters. At least 17 protesters died under armored vehicles' wheels. One video showed army soldiers in uniform vandalizing cars parked on the street and setting one of them on fire. The protesters on Thursday's march were chanting against the ruling military council, the military police and the ministry of interior. They held pictures of late activists Mina Daniel, who was killed on October 9. Daniel has reached a status as a symbol after his death highlighted the military's brutal crackdown on protesters and brought back memories of how the former regime brutalized activists and right advocates. The crowd played the Egyptian national anthem, confronting the military guards who were a few feet away, behind by a large barbwire fence. Some TV staff workers verbally abused the protesters, calling them names and shouting slurs at the crowd, while others inside the building watched silently from windows. The crowd pointed at the building saying “here are the liars” and “the people want to cleanse the media.” Activists' anger stems also from state TV coverage of Bloody Sunday where they reported that the Coptic protesters attacked the military and beat up soldiers, killing three of them, all twisted facts that were soon proven wrong. Announcer Rasha Magdy, in particular, came under fire for her comments on the protest, where she called protesters “thugs attacking the armed forces.” The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) held a press conference following the massacre and denied any wrongdoing, saying that the troops were not even armed. The conference was met with anger and disbelief as it contradicted documented facts and twisted what had taken place that night. Maspero youth group, a rights group founded shortly after the January 25 revolution, which advocates for fair treatment of Copts, said Thursday they wish the SCAF would apologize. They said that what happened that night was unprecedented and called for an immediate independent investigation. They also called for the resignation of the Aswan governor, who they hold responsible for the burning of the church. The governor, a retired military general said the church was at fault and the Mulsim men corrected it, which angered Copts around the country. Last month in Edfu, a group of Muslim men marched to a building where Copts have been praying at for years calling for it to be closed. After clashes, the men set part of the building on fire and few homes and shops owned by Copts in the area were vandalized. Since the beginning of the year, hardly a month goes by without an incident taken place that could be called secterian violence. From the bombing on New Year's at the All Saints church in Alexandria that left 21 dead and hundreds injured, to numerous attacks on Christian houses of worship around the country. Many activists say the old regime has played a great role in fueling the violence and many remnants from that era either remain in their positions or have a role behind the curtain, observers believe. Activists have repeatedly accused former members of the dissolved National Democratic Party to paying thugs and outlaws to attack churches and protesters to help destabilize the country and drive it into civil war. While the SCAF ignores popular demands of making sure that the old regime remnants stay out of politics and public life by issuing a decree that makes certain they are banned from public life for a number of years, public anger and refusal of the ruling council continues to grow. BM
