In a televised statement, Monday evening, the armed forces announced that they are giving all political forces forty-eight hours as a last chance to solve the ongoing problems, or else the armed forces will have to announce a new roadmap for the future, and will enforce certain measures with the help of all factions including the youth, without excluding anyone.
PRO-MORSI PROTESTS
FJP says Morsi supporters at Rabaa Adaweya are four million
The platform set up by Islamists at Cairo’s Rabaa al-Adaweya Mosque reported that there are currently four million pro-Morsi demonstrators in the area, the Freedom and Justice Party’s (FJP) Facebook page said. The demonstrators spread in the square and the area surrounding it. The number could not be verified, but some experts say that the square and the surrounding areas cannot accommodate so many demonstrators. The FJP newspaper ignored anti-Morsi rallies in its major headlines. "The sit-in at Rabaa continues," read its headline. A member of an Islamist alliance that advocates for the defense of President Mohamed Morsi’s legitimacy told the paper that "the opposition is disillusioned and cannot turn against the president." On the FJPs main website, they announced that protests in downtown and Giza were imaginary. “In an attempt to persuade citizens to take to the streets and participate in protests, a number of cars with microphones attached to them sporadically moved round the streets of Downtown Cairo and some streets in Giza playing recordings of protests.” [Aswat Masriya, MBinEnglish, Egypt Independent, 6/30/2013]
Egypt’s al-Jama’a al-Islamiya claims slain Beni Suef man as its own
Al-Jama’a al-Islamiya’s Building and Development Party released a statement late Sunday asserting that a protester killed in Upper Egypt’s Beni Suef governorate earlier in the day was a member of the Islamist group. One man was declared dead following clashes between supporters and opponents of President Mohamed Morsi near the Freedom and Justice Party’s offices in Beni Suef. [Ahram Online, 6/30/2013]
Also of Interest:
Egypt’s Brotherhood to hold press conference | Aswat Masriya
ANTI-MORSI PROTESTS
Millions of Egyptians turn out nationwide for anti-Morsi rallies
On Sunday, millions of opposition protesters hit the streets across Egypt to call for the ouster of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi. Some say Sunday’s protests reached seventeen million across the country—greater in number than any event during the 2011 revolution that toppled Mubarak from his thirty years as president. Hundreds of thousands of anti-Morsi protesters gathered outside the presidential palace in Cairo’s Heliopolis district and in Tahrir Square. Egyptian state-run and privately-owned newspapers have labeled the June 30 protests against Morsi a new revolution against him and his group, the Muslim Brotherhood. Privately-owned al-Shorouk and the pan-Arab, London-based Asharq al-Awsat said that the demonstrations were the largest in the country’s history. Two hundred and fifty fishing boats on Sunday sailed in the Nile in Damietta in protest against Morsi. The fishermen used megaphones to chant slogans against Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood. About 600 families demonstrated Morsi in the upscale Giza district of Mohandiseen on Sunday, taking to the streets to sit on their sofas.
On Monday, thousands arrived in Tahrir Square to join the sit-in that has held the square since Sunday, while protesters in Sohag, Assiut, Monofeya, Beheira and Kafr al-Sheikh forced the closure of several governors’ offices as protests spread. In Cairo, protesters shut down the Mugamma, a major administrative building on Tahrir Square, on Monday morning, in attempts to pile more pressure on the Muslim Brotherhood-led government.
The June 30 Front called for two marches to head to Egypt’s Shura Council, the cabinet and the Qubba presidential palace late on Sunday. They issued a statement on Monday calling on Egyptians to immediately start civil disobedience, urging citizens to stay on the streets until Morsi steps down, giving him until Tuesday to meet their demands. The front also called for holding a million-man demonstration on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, on their Arabic portal, the Freedom and Justice Party published an article describing the protests in downtown Cairo and Giza as “imaginary,” writing, “In an attempt to persuade citizens to take to the streets and participate in protests, a number of cars with microphones attached to them sporadically moved round the streets of Downtown Cairo and some streets in Giza playing recordings of protests. The loud noise caused annoyance to shop owners and residents.” [DNE, Ahram Online, Reuters, Aswat Masriya, Egypt Independent, AP, Ahram Online (Video), DNE (Photos), MbInEnglish/FJP Online, 7/1/2013]
Also of Interest:
Egypt locked in standoff after millions rally against Morsi | Reuters
Cairo’s Tahrir bursts into life after months of quiet | Reuters
Thousands mourn Assiut deaths, chanting against Morsi | Aswat Masriya
SECURITY
Sixteen dead, 781 injured in clashes across Egypt since Sunday
Egypt’s health ministry announced on Monday that sixteen people have been killed and 781 have been injured in confrontations between opponents and supporters of President Mohamed Morsi which began late on Sunday in light of anti-regime protests. Health Minister Mostafa Hamed reported one death in each of Beni Suef, Alexandria, Kafr al-Sheikh and Fayoum, reported the state news agency. Nine of the deaths took place in Cairo and seven in the governorates of Alexandria, Beni Suef, Kafr al-Sheikh, Fayoum and Assiut. One person was killed and two others were injured when unidentified assailants riding a motorcycle opened fire on anti-Morsi protesters rallying in front of Assiut’s city council on Sunday evening. Eight of the nine Cairo deaths happened as violence flared outside the Muslim Brotherhood headquarters in the suburb of Moqattam, when those inside fired at youth hurling petrol bombs and stones at the building.
In a joint statement released on Saturday, twenty-one human rights institutions pledged to monitor acts of violence on June 30 protests, launching a campaign “to support and protect peaceful demonstrations.” “The campaign aims to monitor the peaceful demonstrations in all governorates, and document any irregularities or acts of violence that may occur on June 30,” read the statement. [Ahram Online, Aswat Masriya, SIS, Egypt Independent, DNE, 7/1/2013]
Forty-six sexual assaults in Tahrir protests June 30: Anti-harassment group
Forty-six sexual assaults are reported by Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment (OpAntiSH) during the huge protests covered by international media in Tahrir Square that intend to oust Egypt’s President Morsi. "There [were] men with sticks at the entrance of the metro station across from KFC in Tahrir who are attacking women," reports OpAntiSH, a volunteer group that works to combat sexual violence in protests within the square’s perimeter in downtown Cairo. The Free Egyptians Party said it has observed a campaign of "organized sexual harassment" inside Tahrir Square since the outbreak of June 30 protests against President Mohamed Morsi. In a Monday statement, the party warned against attempts to "terrify" females, smear the revolution and intimidate protesters. It stressed that women played a vital role in peaceful demonstrations. [Ahram Online, Facebook, Egypt Independent, 7/1/2013]
Muslim Brotherhood Egyptian HQ stormed and ransacked
Dozens of protesters stormed and ransacked the Muslim Brotherhood’s headquarters in Moqattam, eastern Cairo, on Monday morning following all-night clashes. An eyewitness told Aswat Masriya that groups of protesters looted several chairs and books that were inside the Brotherhood’s Guidance Bureau. State-run news agency MENA said the break-in came after Brotherhood members who had been defending the building from inside fled in a car. During their escape, the Islamists let off a volley of fire, reportedly bringing the death toll in the Moqattam clashes to eight, with forty-five others injured overnight. The Muslim Brotherhood member accused of firing at demonstrators at the Islamist group’s headquarters in Moqattam has defended his actions, telling prosecutors Monday that he was protecting the building and the 50 people besieged inside. Scores of supporters of President Mohamed Morsi, gathered in Rabaa al-Adaweya Square in Nasr City, headed to the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Moqattam to protect the Guidance Bureau from Morsi’s opponents. The National Salvation Front condemned on Monday the attack on the Muslim Brotherhood’s main headquarters in Moqattam, which left eight people dead and the building destroyed. Brotherhood spokesman Gehad al-Haddad said the movement’s Guidance Bureau was in session and would make an announcement on whether or not the Brotherhood would consider the creation of people’s self-defence committees, after criticizing security forces for failing to protect the headquarters in Sunday’s attack. Cairo’s prosecution has started investigations into the incident, with a team of criminal investigators arrived at the scene to inspect the site. Protesters there reportedly chanted against the Brotherhood as the investigators arrived.
Brotherhood and Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) headquarters were also stormed in Qalubiya, Fayoum, Tanta and Sharqiya. Around fifty protesters were injured with rubber bullets on Sunday while passing in front of the FJP headquarters in Beheira, security sources said. Police fired teargas in Tanta to disperse protesters and Muslim Brotherhood members who clashed after the Brotherhood headquarters was torched. [Ahram Online, Egypt Independent, Aswat Masriya, Reuters, 7/1/2013]
Also of Interest:
Police arrest armed members of the Construction and Development Party | Egypt Independent
GOVERNMENT & OPPOSITION
Egyptian military gives forty-eight hour ultimatum to Brotherhood, political forces
In a televised statement, Monday evening, the armed forces announced that they are giving all political forces forty-eight hours as a last chance to solve the ongoing problems, or else the armed forces will have to announce a new roadmap for the future, and will enforce certain measures with the help of all factions including the youth, without excluding anyone. The statement praised Sunday’s protests against the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood and President Mohamed Morsi. On June 23, Defence Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said that the moral responsibility of the army towards the people compels it to intervene and prevent the country from sliding into a dark tunnel of conflict, internal strife, criminality and treason. [Ahram Online, AP, SCAF statement Facebook (Arabic), Egypt Independent, 7/1/2013]
Presidency announces it is open to dialogue; NSF calls for civil disobedience
Amid unprecedented protests, the presidency addressed the nation twice through televised press conferences on Sunday. Presidential spokesperson Ihab Fahmy said in the conference that although peaceful protests are a right guaranteed by the constitution, acts of violence are unjustified. Fahmy added that the protection of peaceful protesters was the responsibility of the government. Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi knows he has made mistakes and is working to fix them, a spokesman for the Egyptian leader said on Sunday after a day of mass protests demanding that the head of state quit. Presidential spokesman Omar Amer said Morsi was serious in his repeated calls for national dialogue. Egypt’s official presidential spokesman said on Sunday that there is no need for the army to intervene in order to resolve the current crisis between the presidency and political forces.
The main opposition coalition group, the National Salvation Front (NSF), has issued two “revolutionary statements" to comment on ongoing mass rallies against Morsi’s rule and to call for civil disobedience. "In the name of the Egyptian people with all their factions, the NSF announces public endorsement of the ouster of the regime of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood," the statement reads. [DNE, Reuters, Ahram Online, SIS, NSF Statement #1 (Facebook), NSF Statement #2 (Facebook), Aswat Masriya, 7/1/2013]
Four ministers, five MPs resign in protest against government
Four ministers resigned from the Egyptian Cabinet Monday in protest against perceived mishandling of the current political standoff in the country by President Mohamed Morsi’s government, state-run news agency MENA reported, quoting informed sources. Minister of State for Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Hatem Bagato, Minister of Communications Atef Helmy, Minister of Environment Khaled Fahmy and Tourism Minister Hesham Zazou all resigned, al-Masry al-Youm reported Monday. Five secular Shura Council MPs also tendered official resignations on Monday to protest what they referred to as the “current conditions in the country." [Egypt Independent, Aswat Masriya, 7/1/2013]
Salafi Nour Party says Morsi must make concessions
The leader of Egypt’s Islamist Nour party urged his sometime ally President Mohamed Morsi to make concessions to avert bloodshed and presented himself on Sunday as a mediator with protesters on the streets. "There must be concessions, even if they are difficult and bitter, to safeguard the blood of Egyptians," Makhyoun said in a rare interview. "We are worried about an escalation that will be hard to control, and that guns will have the loudest voice." Morsi could no longer simply ride out protests as he has in the past, Makhyoun said, floating the suggestion that Morsi might be forced to hold referendum on staying in office. Meanwhile, al-Jama’a al-Islamiya issued a statement on Sunday afternoon stressing its commitment to peaceful protests in support of the president’s democratic legitimacy, as its members join the hundreds of thousands protesting outside the Rabaa al-Adaweya Mosque in Cairo’s Nasr city. [Reuters, Ahram Online, 6/30/2013]
Also of Interest:
Egypt reins in state TV as protests continue | Egypt Independent
Amr Moussa to the Muslim Brotherhood: Take the people seriously | DNE
Political forces isolate Qalubiya’s governor | Aswat Masriya
Morsi approves new diplomatic reshuffle | SIS
REGIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
Kerry: US administration closely following up Egypt developments
US Secretary of State John Kerry said that the US administration is closely following up the developments in the Egyptian street, as massive popular demonstrations calling for the downfall of President Mohamed Morsi are getting more intense. Kerry told a news conference in Israel that he talked with Egyptian political leaders Mohamed ElBaradei, Amr Moussa and others in addition to King Abdullah II of Jordan about the worrying situation in Egypt. He also said he is in contact with the White House over procedures to guarantee the safety of the American Embassy and diplomatic staff in Egypt, noting that proper heavy security measures have been taken around the premises of the US Embassy and that Americans’ safety is ensured. Speaking to the press, the White House’s Jay Carney said, “We’ve been in touch with all of our contacts in the government—the political leadership, the military. Those conversations haven’t just focused on the security of our facilities—that’s clearly been a top priority for us—we’ve also focused on our desire for there to be a peaceful resolution of differences in Egypt, respect for both peaceful protests, also the obligation of the opposition to protest peacefully. We’ve also been in touch with the opposition as well through our contacts.” [SIS, 7/1/2013]
Also of Interest:
Egyptian expats in London protest against President Morsi, Muslim Brotherhood | Ahram Online
Ethiopian FM expresses wish to visit Egypt | SIS
FSA chief offers warning to Syrians in Egypt | Egypt Independent
Al-Qaradawi returns to Egypt from Qatar | DNE
Iraqi FM says his country is committed to protecting Egyptians | Egypt Independent
ECONOMY
Egypt debt insurance cost at record, more currency fall seen
The cost of insuring Egyptian debt against default surged to record highs on Monday after a night of politically-inspired violence. Forward contracts indicated a significant fall for the country’s currency against the dollar after millions protested nationally over the weekend, calling for President Mohamed Morsi’s resignation. [Reuters, 7/1/2013]
Cairo ATMs run out of foreign banknotes amid Egypt protests
Several ATMs in downtown Cairo have run dry of foreign banknotes, amid ongoing protests over the rule of President Morsi and renewed pressure on the Egyptian pound. Some forecast that the exchange rate will reach 9 pounds to the dollar, up from around 7 today. The black market in currency, which usually thrives amid economic crises, resumed its activity, according to currency-exchange employee Ahmed Jalal. [Al-Arabiya, Egypt Independent, 7/1/2013]
Also of Interest:
Egypt market gains on Morsi anniversary protests | Ahram Online
Courts appoint tax evasion committee for CBC owner | Egypt Independent
Stock exchange up LE2.1 billion | Egypt Independent, DNE
Bourse will not halt trading under any circumstances claims new head of exchange | DNE
Empty streets offer reprieve from fuel crisis | DNE
Oil prices rise above $97 as protests in Egypt continue | AP
Photo: Abdel-Rahman Hussein
Image: photo_1.jpg