Police strike in Egypt continues nationwide

Egypt's riot police

The massive police strike which has started several days ago in Egypt continues nationwide with dozens of the new police stations joining the protests all over the country.

According to the reports more than 30 police stations in different Egypt’s governorates have shut their doors and stopped their work on Friday, 8 March. The police stations in Cairo joined the protests include those in the districts of Helwan, Maadi, Giza, Dokki and others. Several police stations in the coastal city of Alexandria didn’t work today too in a protest.

The police strike includes also other Egyptian governorates, Port Said, Assiut, Luxor, North Sinai, Damietta, Gharbiya, Mahalla, Mansoura and others are among them.

The day before Egypt’s State’s Security officers announced their refusal to protect the residence of Egypt’s President Mohamed Morsy located in his hometown of Zagazig. But some policemen reportedly remain guarding the headquarters of Muslim Brotherhood as the office of Egypt’s strongest ruling power and the group from which the current President hails has been attacked several times.

Some police officers in Cairo starter their sit-in in front of the Ministry of Interior calling from their demands to be heard.

Among the main demands expressed by the striking police officers, personnel and recruits are the following:

-          The end of the so called “Brotherhoodisation” of all the state’s institutions including the Ministry of Interior;

-          Dismissal of the current Minister of Interior Mohamed Ibrahim, who was recently appointed by Mohamed Morsy;

-          Improving of the working conditions of the policemen as they are deteriorated and inhumane, according to the policemen;

-          Arming the policemen with the weapon to make them able to protect themselves from the armed thugs while performing their duty protecting the security of the citizens and public and private property.

Protests in Egypt

Some of the protesters also chant against the Muslim Brotherhood’s policies and against Egypt’s President Mohamed Morsy. They also accuse the current Interior Minister of creating the unbearable situation for the CSF officers and personnel throwing them into the confrontations with the protesters in the cities.

It’s worth mentioning also that Egypt’s Central Security Forces have withdrawn from the city of Port Said giving the control over the city to the Armed Forced deployed to the restive Canal City en masse after the violent clashes erupted in the city on 26 January, as the death sentences have been declared for the 21 out of 73 defendants in the Port Said football massacre case. The second stage of the trial is scheduled for the Saturday, 9 March, and there are worries about the possibility of the new wave of the protests and clashes. Police forces in their turn announced on Friday that they refuse to control the city and left Port Said to the army in a decision met positively by some of the protesters.

Residents of Port Said and Egyptian Army soldiers

Meanwhile Egypt’s Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim has sacked today the Commander of the Central Security Forces of Egypt, General Maged Nouh, and replaced him with Ashraf Abdallah.

The protests and strike of the police continue though during several days with more and more police stations and policemen joining the protests. More police stations are expected to participate in the strike on Saturday, 9 March, according to the police.