Egypt Violence Escalates, EU Warns of Urgent Review of Ties

Local Editor

Thirty-six prisoners were killed Sunday during an attempted jailbreak, bringing to almost 800 the toll in five days of violence since the government decided to confront supporters of ousted president Mohammad Mursi.

The Egyptian interior ministry said the prisoners had taken an officer hostage and died after suffocating on tear gas.
"Thirty-six of the prisoners died of suffocation and crowding after tear gas was used to stop their escape," the ministry said.

The killings are the latest in five days of bloodshed.

In his first remarks since the campaign was launched, military chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, warned security forces would confront any further violence from protesters.
"We will never be silent in the face of the destruction of the country," Sisi told top military and police commanders.
"We are very prepared for this," he said, pledging a "forceful" response to further attacks on police stations and government buildings.

The army and police have sent reinforcements to the Abu Zaabal prison, the scene of Sunday's deadly jailbreak attempt, the official MENA news agency reported.
The pro-Mursi Anti-Coup Alliance, which has been pressing for the leader's reinstatement, accused police of killing 52 prisoners.
"The killing of 52 of anti-coup detainees emphasizes the systematic violence practiced against opponents of the coup, and emphasizes the killing operations in cold blood they face," the group said in a statement in English.

At a mosque in the Dokki neighborhood of Cairo, where one march was scheduled to begin, residents stood guard.
"We are waiting for them. I swear we will kill them if they approach the mosque," one said.
In the evening, the interior ministry announced a ban on vigilantes who have formed self-styled "popular committees" and urged citizens to respect a nightly curfew.
The announcement came as hundreds of protesters briefly marched in the Suez canal city of Ismailiya.
Two policemen were later killed in a shooting attack near the city, the interior ministry said.

On another level, European Union leaders, Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso, warned Egypt's army and interim government Sunday that the bloc was ready to "review" ties failing an end to violence and return to dialogue.

In a long statement, the presidents of the European Council and European Commission leaders warned that further escalation could have "unpredictable consequences" for Egypt and for the region and placed responsibility for a return to calm on the army and government.
"The calls for democracy and fundamental freedoms from the Egyptian population cannot be disregarded, much less washed away in blood," Van Rompuy and Barroso said.
"In cooperation with its international and regional partners, the EU will remain firmly engaged in efforts to promote an end to violence, resumption of political dialogue and return to a democratic process.

"To this effect, together with its member states, the EU will urgently review in the coming days its relations with Egypt and adopt measures aimed at pursuing these goals."
The statement was released 24 hours before senior diplomats from the 28 EU nations hold emergency talks on Egypt in Brussels in which they are expected to call for a snap meeting of foreign ministers within the next days.
Saying it was crucial that violence end immediately, the statement added that "while all should exert maximum restraint, we underline the particular responsibility of the interim authorities and of the army in bringing clashes to a halt."

"The violence and the killings of these last days cannot be justified nor condoned. Human rights must be respected and upheld. Political prisoners should be released.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team