Calm morning follows a tense night of clashes in Egypt’s Mahalla
Police and protesters in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla clash on Saturday leaving dozens injured
Overnight clashes between protesters and police in the industrial city of Mahalla, in the Nile Delta governorate of Gharbiya, subsided by 9:30am Sunday, following a night of scuffles in the center of the city.
Shortly following the Port Said trial verdict was issued in Cairo, fierce clashes broke out in Mahalla’s main square, El-Shoan, after protesters attempted to throw Molotov cocktails at Mahalla’s Second Police station prompting police forces to fire tear gas at in an attempt to disperse them.
The main El-Bahr road in the city was also blocked by protesters who called for the dismissal of the minister of interior Mohamed Ibrahim and the reform of the ministry.
At least 33 people including 10 police officers were reported injured on Saturday.
Saad Mekki, the head of the General Mahalla Hospital, told Al-Ahram Arabic news website that eight had been injured during the night including four officers.
Police and anti-President Morsi protesters have been locked in bloody confrontations for several days in the city.
Activists in the city have been calling for a campaign of civil disobedience since the start of March, similar to calls in the cities of Tanta, Mansoura, Ismailia, and Suez. (…)
Presse contre-révolutionnaire (Ahram Online, 10 mars 2013)