Over 1,000 Detained As Egypt Expands Crackdown after Anti-Sisi Protests - Reports

By Staff, Agencies

Egyptian authorities arrested more than 1,000 people, rights groups said Wednesday, broadening a crackdown that has seen prominent critics detained after rare protests calling for the ouster of general-turned-President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.

The wave of arrests came ahead of a "million-man march" Friday called for by an exiled businessman whose online videos accusing Sisi and the military of corruption sparked last week's rallies.

The Egyptian Centre for Freedoms and Rights said 1,003 had been detained since the scattered demonstrations erupted last Friday in Cairo and other cities across the country.

The Egyptian Centre for Economic and Social Rights reported 1,298 arrested.

The high profile dissidents detained include Khaled Dawoud, a former leader of the liberal Al-Dostour party as well as award-winning human rights lawyer Mahienour El-Massry and veteran labor union activist Kamal Khalil, both of whom were arrested over the past week.

Last week's protests followed an appeal by Mohamed Aly, an exiled Egyptian businessman living in Spain, to unseat Sisi after accusing him of corruption in a series of videos that went viral on social media.

While protests are a rare sight in Egypt, banned by Sisi since he came to power in 2013, hundreds rallied last week in Cairo and other cities, condemning the government.