CAIRO: The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) blamed the recent violence on provocateurs with a systematic plan to bring Egypt down, saying military forces exercised self-restraint in the deadly crackdown.
SCAF General Adel Emara promised in a press conference Monday to investigate the widely publicized case of a woman stripped to her bra and beaten unconscious by soldiers during the crackdown. He said, however, people should also consider the circumstances that led to this.
The general insisted that no orders were given to clear the Cabinet sit-in on Dec. 16. The crackdown on the weeks-long sit-in and the ensuing clashes left at least 12 dead and over 800 injured. The majority of the fatalities are of gunshot wounds, according to human rights lawyers. Some have reported 13 deaths.
He justified the crackdown by saying that there is a difference between a “pure” protester with legitimate demands and provocateurs.
Emara said soldiers only acted in response to protesters’ attack on government buildings.
“What are we supposed to do when protesters break the law? Should we invite people from abroad to govern our nation?” said Emara.
“The media is helping sabotage the state,” he said.
A number of parliamentarians elected in the first and second rounds of elections declared an open sit-in at the High Court, demanding the prosecution of the military leaders responsible for the violence. The MPs include liberal Amr Hamzawy, Mohamed El-Beltagy of the Islamist Freedom and Justice Party and culture icon Mohamed El Sawy.
“SCAF has failed to get the job done efficiently therefore they have to reset the timeline for handing over power,” El Sawy said in a press conference to announce the sit-in Monday.
“SCAF has a contract with the people to protect this land, but they did not. Instead they killed people. SCAF is responsible for protecting the Scientific Complex [which was burnt during clashes] as they are responsible for protecting the land. SCAF must reconsider the deadlines for handing over power,” said Magdy Korkor, of the Labor Party.
The group said SCAF should hand over power to the elected parliament no later than February 2012.
Earlier during the SCAF press conference, Emara interrupted one journalist who was demanding that SCAF officially apologize to Egyptian women, to say that he received information that a group was plotting to burn down parliament at that very moment.
Yet, reporters in Tahrir Square at the time said the situation was calm.
The general likened the escalation of violence, which entered its fourth day Monday, to other deadly crackdowns on protesters on June. 28-29, Oct. 9 and Nov. 19-24, saying they are part of systematic plan to destroy the state.
“There is a systematic way of starting these confrontations with soldiers,” Emara said.
Emara evaded questions about the use of excessive violence against protesters and the so-called “third party” to instead read out statements, some praising the role of the army.
He told journalists that the clashes began when protesters, camped outside the Cabinet since Nov. 25, attacked an army officer and insulted him, which led to the intervention of “brave” soldiers protecting the Cabinet building.
Soldiers there were only armed with riot gear, he said, blaming the protesters for using excessive force and praising the soldiers for their self-restraint. In reference to the use of teargas against protesters in November, the general said no internationally sanctioned gas was used.
“But the other side [protesters] was allowed to use whatever they wanted,” he said, adding that they used Molotov Cocktails, gas cylinders and fireworks.
Emara said that about 80 people were detained during Friday morning clashes, 60 of them were released and 20 are still held pending investigations.
Several protesters said they were severely beaten when detained briefly on Friday at the Cabinet and parliament buildings.
Emara paid condolences to the families of the victims of the violence and expressed regret for the loss of historical manuscripts in a fire that engulfed the Scientific Complex.
He blamed the fire on protesters, who he claimed obstructed fire trucks from reaching the historical building.
“It’s the honor of Egypt that has been lost … This is something history will hold us accountable for. It’s a catastrophe,” he said.
Asked why the water hoses at the parliament building were not used to put out the fire, the general said the protesters didn’t allow it.
Since Friday at dawn, men in military uniform and civilian clothes were seen throwing rocks and furniture on protesters from the rooftops of the government buildings on Magles El-Shaab and Qasr Al-Ainy Streets. One of these building was that of the Scientific Complex, protesters said.
The general said one satellite TV channel reported the burning of the building one hour before it caught fire, to prove that this was part of a plot.
He added that rumors on Friday spread promptly to Tahrir Square which infuriated more protesters who came to the Cabinet building when more clashes ensued.
According to General Emara, on Friday night protesters burnt down the General Authority for Roads and Bridges building and looted other state institutes.
By Sunday, the army had erected two walls blocking both Qasr Al-Ainy and Sheikh Rihan Streets, both leading to and from Tahrir Square.
“They want Egypt to fall. But Egypt will never fall as long as we have the honorable civilians including those of the armed forces,” he added.
The general backed up his words with a video collage of footage, saying it confirms that protesters were to blame. The sequence of events wasn’t clear in the edited scenes, part of which showed teenagers saying they were paid to take part in the clashes.
Other footage showed an injured soldier, wounded by a sharp object.
Independent groups and activists have published counter videos showing footage of military violations during the crackdown to coincide with the SCAF press conference.
