Police officers from Mahalla Second Police Station entered a strike on Saturday in solidarity with Wael Mansour and Reda El-Masny, two police officers injured during violent clashes in Mahalla on Friday.
Hundreds of protesters attacked the police station with rocks and Molotov cocktails on Friday, leaving several police officers injured. Mansour was transferred to Al-Fadaly hospital in Tanta, while El-Masny was transferred to Mahalla’s Investment Hospital as they were the most severely injured.
Mahmoud Haroun, activist and resident of Mahalla, claimed that one of the police officers was injured when he tried to use a knife to subdue a protester. “The protester grabbed the knife from the officer and attacked him with it.” He added that the other officer was injured around his home, following a fight with his neighbours. “The injury of the second police officer has nothing to do with the protests or protesters,” Haroun said.
Haroun said that 28 protesters were arrested during Friday’s clashes and were transferred to Al-Toor prison in Gharbiya on Saturday morning.
Haroun said that protesters had submitted a complaint to the general lawyer of Mahalla regarding the 28 people arrested, adding that they are still waiting for his decision.
Civil disobedience occurred in Mahalla on Friday, after cars circled the city with speakers calling shop owners to close their shops down and taxi and microbus drivers to refrain from passing through Al-Shoon square, where protesters gathered.
Shop owners and taxi and microbus drivers complied with the protesters’ demands, in fear of being attacked by protesters.
Protesters blocked Al-Bahr Street using burning car tires, disrupting traffic in the city.
Protesters also blocked the railway connecting Mahalla to Mansoura for almost three hours before security forces reopened the line.
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