Violence Intensifies In Several Egyptian Governorates As Night Falls On Jan 25 Anniversary

he second anniversary of Egypt’s revolution saw government offices stormed and violent street clashes in several governorates around Egypt, with events continuing into the night.

As night fell on a day of demonstrations and marches, violence was reported in four governorates – Tanta, Minya, Suez and Mahalla; clashes have also been reported in Damanhour and Alexandria during the afternoon Friday afternoon. In Cairo, violence that had flared up the day before the anniversary continued around protest flashpoints near Tahrir Square throughout the day.

According to live footage by private satellite channel ONTV. the governorate headquarters in Suez was set on fire. The channel also reported that there were violent clashes between protesters and police forces around the perimeter of the building.

In the Upper Egyptian city of Minya, violent clashes with rocks and Molotov cocktails erupted between Muslim Brotherhood members and protesters in front of the Muslim Brotherhood headquarters.

Police fired teargas to disperse the crowds, adding to the injuries in both camps. No reports on the number of injuries have yet been provided.

In the city of Tanta, eight protesters and two policemen were injured during violent clashes around the vicinity of the city’s security directorate, reported Al-Ahram’s Arabic news website.

In the Delta city of Mahalla, clashes were also seen, with protesters setting the governor’s office on fire by throwing Molotov cocktails at the building.

In the evening, the Nile Delta city of Damanhour, the Freedom and Justice Party headquarters was raided by unknown assailants.

Meanwhile, clashes had erupted in front of the governorate headquarters in Egypt’s second city of Alexandria earlier on Friday afternoon.

Hundreds of demonstrators who identified themselves as members of the ‘Black Bloc’ – a new anti-Brotherhood protest group – formed lines as they approached the government building and were met with teargas by the security forces.

Several protesters of the Black Bloc also stormed an Alexandrian court building during the violence.

Ahram