By Abdel Rahman Youssef
ALEXANDRIA: Army forces clashed Tuesday with protesters and families of martyrs attending the trial of police officers accused of killing Jan. 25 protesters in Alexandria.
Scuffles broke out when protesters chanted against police and army forces, which provoked the army forces.
Three protesters were briefly detained in an Armed Personnel Carrier in front of the court, which provoked martyrs’ families who chanted against military rule and insisted the activists be released.
The three were released after military police negotiated with the families to calm the crowds down.
Army forces blocked all the routes leading to the court and inspected the trial’s attendants.
Head of Alexandria’s Criminal Court Justice Mohamed Abdel Hady adjourned the case to Wednesday after recessing for two times due to chaos inside the courtroom. Martyrs’ families cried when case evidence was exhibited, among them videos of showing their children being killed.
Among the defendants are former head of Alexandria security directorate General Mohamed Ibrahim and head of Central Security Forces (CSF) unit General Adel El-Lakkany.
The families also rejected the security cordon around the dock that prevented them from seeing the defendants clearly, especially when one police officer inside the dock was said to have smiled as the families wailed in grief.
A judicial source told Daily News Egypt that the court is expected to resume inspecting the evidence after deciding not to allow martyr’s families to enter the courtroom to restore order.
The number of victims in the case reached 96 martyrs and 490 injured.
