(Photo by Ahmed Al-Malky\DNE)
By Ahmed Samir
Falcon, the security firm working in 12 universities across Egypt, withdrew its personnel from the entrances of Al-Azhar, Cairo, and Ain Shams universities on Sunday after clashes broke out.
Sharif Khaled, Executive and Managing Director of Falcon Group, told Al-Borsa newspaper on Sunday that the company issued withdrawal orders to all its employees securing the three universities. The withdrawal came after police claimed a number of Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated students stormed the universities with firearms and sticks.
Later on Sunday, Khaled however denied that the company employees who are responsible for securing company gates are all still carrying out their jobs and that none of them withdrew.
Khaled said the company’s assignment is limited only to securing the gates of the universities from outside to ensure that individuals without university IDs do not enter.
He said that Falcon will not interfere in the riots that took place in the three universities on Sunday, as personnel do not have any means to defend themselves. Their role at the universities, he added, is strictly limited to securing campus gates and monitoring student entry.
The company has 12,000 employees including 580 who are employed to work with women. Falcon owns 56% of the market according to the last informal evaluation issued, which ranked the company first in its field. In previous evaluations, the company was said to have acquired 45% of the market according to Forbes magazine, while in 2013, Sky News ranked the company first in the Arab world.
Falcon Holdings has a number of subsidiaries that operate across a variety of fields including security services, money transfer, technical and security systems, project administration, investment, and sports marketing.
