(AFP File Photo)
By: Farida Fansa
Two Black Bloc members accused of setting fire to buildings have surrendered themselves to the authorities following arrests on Thursday night.
“Two members of the Black Bloc have surrendered themselves to authorities,” said lawyer Amr Imam. “Another two members were arrested on Saturday morning from their homes.” He added that four members were arrested on Friday night, bringing the total to eight detainees.
Human Rights Lawyer Ragia Omran confirmed that only eight members of the 22 summoned by the Prosecutor General appeared in court on Saturday morning. “The arrested members were accused of burning the premises of the Security Directorate in Damietta and the headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood in Menufiya,” she said.
She added that members were also accused of possessing weapons.
Omran stated that “the Front to Defend Egyptian Protesters (FDEP) are attending court on behalf of the eight Black Bloc members”. “They have transferred seven detainees to Torah prison, and one detainee, who is a minor, to Madinet Nasr police station,” she added Al-Tayar Al-Sha’aby member Mohamed Awad and 6 April Democratic Front Movement member Mina “Al-Salafi” Mikhail were arrested on Saturday morning in front of the Fifth Settlement court, where they were protesting in solidarity with their arrested colleagues. . At the time of print, they were being interrogated and are set to be transferred to the Cairo Security Directorate.
Heba Yassin, spokesperson for the Al-Tayar Al-Shaaby, added: “The two activists, Awad and Mikhail, were both exposed to physical violence, in which Mohamed Awad was injured”.
