18 - 24 April 2002
Issue No.582
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 18 - 24 April 2002 Issue No.582 |
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Protest diary
Thursday 11 AprilTHE Coptic Orthodox Church held a Palestine- solidarity rally which was attended by both Pope Shenouda III and Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Mohamed Sayed Tantawi, as well as a number of public figures, parliamentarians and thousands of Christians and Muslims.
The rally, which was attended by some 10,000 people, telephoned the besieged Palestinian President Yasser Arafat at his Ramallah headquarters, and the call was played on loudspeakers so that Arafat could address those in attendance. Pope Shenouda saluted all the Palestinian women and men who have sacrificed their lives in the struggle against the Israeli occupation.
A group of women's organisations demonstrated in front of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) headquarters in Cairo, demanding that it pressure Israel so that it can operate in the occupied and besieged Palestinian towns.
Friday 12 April
FOR the third successive week, Palestine- solidarity, anti-Israeli and anti-American demonstrations broke out at the historic Al-Azhar Mosque following the Friday prayers. Thousands of people took part in this Friday's demonstration.
A popular rally held in Al-Raml, Alexandria was attended by some 30,000 people. It condemned Israel and voiced full support for the Palestinian resistance. Speakers called for the expulsion of both the US and Israeli ambassadors and the boycott of US and Israeli products. They called for the formation of an Islamic-Arab military coalition to face "aggression on the Islamic holy sites." Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin addressed the rally from Gaza by telephone. "Gaza will be a graveyard for the Zionists if they try to invade it," he said.
Vodafone Egypt, a private mobile network company, joined in the solidarity movement and announced that all revenues from those who dial 2820 (LE1.50 per minute) will go to the Palestinians.
Saturday 13 April
A group of artists, public figures and athletes took part in a rally marking the 32nd anniversary of the Bahr Al-Baqar massacre, in 1970, which Israei planes bombed an Egyptian school, killing dozens of children. This time, however the anniversary was pegged on Israel's escalating aggression against the Palestinians. The attendants called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador, as well as boycotting US and Israeli products.
Massive student demonstrations took place in Alexandria, Al-Gharbiya and Menoufiya governorates. Protesters called for a halt on the normalisation of ties with Israel, for the unity of the Arabs and for support for the Intifada. A political rally attended by representatives of the various political groups in Menoufiya called for an international fact-finding committee to investigate Israeli atrocities against the Palestinians.
Sunday 14 April
THE prosecutor-general released the 69 students who were arrested last week during violent demonstrations in Alexandria university.
President Hosni Mubarak postponed the opening of the Alexandria Library, scheduled for April 23, in solidarity with the Palestinians and in protest against Israel's war.
Al-Azhar University's branch in Assiut, Upper Egypt, was the scene of massive demonstrations. Students burned the US and Israeli flags and called on the Arab regimes to adopt a decisive stance towards "Zionist arrogance."
The Engineer's Syndicate in Alexandria held a political rally attended by thousands, to which President Yasser Arafat made a speech by phone from Ramallah.
Al-Daqahliya Bar Association lawyers observed a sit-in to protest against Israeli attacks on the Palestinians.
Monday 15 April
NEARLY 200 students at the American University in Cairo held a peaceful protest at Tahrir Square on Tuesday, raising Palestinian flags and banners calling upon the United States to pressure Israel to stop its massacres against the Palestinian people.
Students who organised the event said they had agreed to meet at the heavily-guarded Tahrir Square instead of marching to it from their nearby university campuses to avoid confrontation with police. The students stood peacefully for two hours without chanting any slogans, and dispersed shortly before thousands of government employees left their offices at 2pm, as agreed with police. They were also keen to clean up after them, taking all the bottles of mineral water they had brought to bear the suffocating heat of the day.
Police not only allowed the students to stand in the square, but also welcomed state-television cameras to interview them. One officer said this was "a good example of a civilised protest in support of the Palestinian people."
Students in Zagazig, Cairo and Al-Azhar universities continued demonstrations.
Thousands attended a massive Palestine- solidarity rally in the north east Delta town of Ras Al-Bar, organised by the members of the Bar Association.
The Nasserist Party held their first political rally since the Israeli invasion of the West Bank. The rally, held at the party's headquarters in central Cairo, was attended by a number of opposition political party leaders including Ibrahim Shukri, head of the frozen Islamist-oriented Labour Party.
Mustafa Zaki, head of the importers division in the Egyptian Chamber of Commerce, warned consumers that most of the non-sourced commodities in the local market are Israeli-made. Zaki called for "deterrent" measures against those who import products from Israel and announced 20 April as a day for collecting donations for the Palestinian people.
In a seminar in Helwan south of Cairo, Osama El-Baz, political adviser to President Hosni Mubarak, condemned Israel and asserted the right of the Palestinian people to resist occupation.
Tuesday 16 April
AL-WAFD newspaper, mouthpiece of the opposition Wafd party published a list of US brands and products to boycott. According to the newspaper, the list consists of companies that help fund Israel's war machine.
Sweeping demonstrations (clockwise, top left): protestors of all ages taking part in a demonstration outside Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo after Friday prayers; a student at Alexandria University writes the name of Mohamed El-Saqqa who was killed on 9 April during anti-Israel protests; Cairo University was the hotbed for demonstrators in the capital; Zaqaziq university students flash the V-sign and hold up Arafat's solemn picture with the slogan "millions are willing to die for Jerusalem" written on the top
photo: Abdel-Wahab El-Seheti
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