There were two main scenes clearly in Mohamed Mahmoud St., which were the main headlines in the past week. The first scenes are of houses burning and shutting down after their residents left them. In Mohamed Mahmoud St., a famous street in Tahrir Square, some residents refused to leave their houses. They divided the day into shifts to keep guard of houses and shops from vandalism and theft. Youm7 monitored the suffering of residents in the street around the Egyptian Ministry of Interior headquarters and streets close to Tahrir Square. Shop owner Yasser Salah assured most region residents left their houses after being burned down by central security ammunition. “Most houses here are old and their residents are old people. They suffer health conditions, especially from teargas the security forces used against the Tahrir protestors. Some children also couldn't handle the smoke and teargas,” Salah said. A resident in Mohamed Mahmoud St. Hassan Abdullah said most shop owners split their days into shifts to protect their properties, fearing theft and thugs' attack. Abdullah described the events as destructive. They clashed with thugs in masses, trying to rob houses. One housewife living on the fourth floor said she refused to leave her house because she fears robberies. However, she sent her children at her mother's house because they could not handle the teargas. Another resident Osama Mohamed al-Saady said he could not even reach a pharmacy to buy insulin. “Most pharmacies were closed. I had to walk two kilometers to reach the nearest pharmacy,” he added Al-Saady described security forces attacking the Tahrir protesters as unjustified violence. “On Sunday November 19, security forces severely beat the protesters. I saw eight policemen beat just one protester, while other dragged some protesters into the Ministry of Interior while others threw teargas and rubber bullets.” “Even if some of the protestors made some mistake and threw rocks at security forces, other protesters do not deserve such brutal treatment,” Al-Saady said.
