CAIRO - The fear of continued violence is again on Egyptians's minds after numerous reports of Muslim Brotherhood violence occurred in recent days following the country’s “second revolution” that ousted President Mohamed Morsi.
On Saturday, Egypt's prosecutors were investigating a number of reports accusing Muslim Brotherhood leaders of inciting violence against political opponents and attempting "terrorism" acts to spread fear among people.
The reports named ousted President Morsi; Mohamed Badie, the supreme leader of the group; and his second in command, the business mogul Khairat al-Shater, among other influential speakers in the group.
Shater was arrested and sent to the infamous Torah prison on Saturday for his role in the continuing violence. The prison, known for years as the place where activists were imprisoned, is now home to many of the Brotherhood leaders as well as those from the Hosni Mubarak regime, which was ousted in the January 2011 revolution.
Badie gave an unannounced speech to thousands at a rally in support of the deposed Morsi, where he urged people to "remain put in the street, until legitimacy is reinstalled and Morsi returns to power."
Shortly after the speech ended, a few thousand Morsi backers marched towards the state Television and Radio Building (Maspero), located close to Tahrir Square, and attacked protesters.
In Egypt's second largest city, Alexandria, clashes erupted even more violently as hundreds of pro-Morsi militants fired gun shots in the air and attacked an anti-Morsi protest. A video appeared on social networks soon after, showing militants holding Jihadist flags throwing young men off the top of buildings.
Damanhour and Beni Sweif, in the Nile Delta region, also saw clashes spreading as Egyptians faced mounting violence from the Muslim Brotherhood.
Since the Egyptian military's takeover of power last week, police in the Sinai Peninsula have come under attack by militants, who killed eight policemen since Sunday, according to officials. The armed forces coined the operation there a “war on terrorism,” amid local support from residents.
At least 36 people died in clashes across the country and more than 1,400 were injured, according to official estimates by the Ministry of Health, following the spiritual guide's speech.
Near Tahrir, on top of a bridge that overlooks the square, pro-Morsi marchers over the weekend started clashing with protesters below. Gunshots were heard as fireworks were being shot from above and below the bridge after the pro-Morsi crowd was pushed back by protesters.
Two hours earlier, police and armed forces stepped in and the angry mob left towards Cairo's residential area of Manial, where they again fired gunshots, injuring a number of people and destroying businesses and shops along the main streets, according to eyewitnesses. Residents took up knives and sticks and stood by their entries to protect their families. At least six people were killed.
Security forces announced they had arrested a number of militant protesters, including a woman with an explosive belt, before they allegedly attacked anti-Morsi protesters. Dozens of Brotherhood members have been arrested over the past three days for inciting and participating in violence against Egyptian citizens.
Making matters more tenuous, a consortium of Islamist groups called for protests on Sunday, urging their supporters to support Morsi against what they dubbed a “military coup.”
The National Coalition in Support of Legitimacy issued the statement on Saturday, a day after dozens of people were killed as Islamists opposed to Morsi's overthrow took to the streets to “vent their fury,” as the statement read. The violence stemming from the Islamists’s statements and protests have put Egyptians on edge as they brace for a continued security vacuum.
To many, the violent responses from Morsi's supporters have brought back bloody memories of the religious militants who waged war on the country in the mid-1990s. Then-President Hosni Mubarak and his cabinet oppressed the armed struggle with force, rounding up many and sentencing them to prison.
The headline "war on terrorism" is making a comeback.
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