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| Africa North |
| Judge hospitalized after Cairo protest |
| 2006-04-24 |
| One judge was wounded and 15 activists were detained Monday when Egyptian police broke up a protest in support of judges calling for reforms, a security official and witnesses said. "Fifteen people were detained in the early hours of Monday outside the judges syndicate in Cairo," the official said on condition of anonymity. "Plain-clothed security tried to remove us by force," said Salma Said, one of the 40 protesters and a member the pro-reform Youth for Change movement. "They beat some of the protesters up and when Judge Mahmoud Hamza came down to defend us, he was beaten up too," she said. The judge was hospitalized but his condition was not thought to be serious. Organizers from the Kefaya (Enough) protest movement said the protesters were holding a 24-hour sit-in in front of the Judges' Club to draw attention to the plight of the two judges facing questioning. They beat the protesters with sticks ... Judge Mahmoud Hamza is still in hospital," said Hany Enan, an organizer with Kefaya. "The sit-in ... is to draw attention to the judges," said Enan. "They (the police) thought that if they can remove the protesters, people will not notice the issue anymore," he added. |
| Posted by:Fred |