7 killed, hundreds injured in recent Egyptian clashes (VIDEO)
Egyptian protesters use makeshift shields to approach the Shura council building during clashes the army in Cairo on December 16, 2011.
Fresh violence that killed seven people and left hundreds injured followed the second-round of Egypt’s historic elections where millions of voters took to the ballot box to determine the country’s next leaders, according to media reports.
Soldiers attacked an anti-military protest camp near Cairo’s Cabinet building on Friday in what the Associated Press described activists being attacked by concrete, glass and gunfire:
“Several women protesters cowered on the pavement as military police beat them with truncheons and long sticks. Another woman was seen bring dragged away by her hair by soldiers."
The report continued:
"Plainclothes and uniformed security officers threw slabs of concrete and stones on protesters from atop the parliament building, according to state TV footage and videos and photos posted by protesters on social networking sites. Protesters threw fire bombs and rocks at the security officers, lighting a part of parliament on fire and chanting ‘Down with the military.’”
Many Egyptians took to social media, posting videos, photos and status updates documenting the interim-government’s aggression.
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Clashes broke out late Thursday after soldiers beat up several judges trying to enter polling centers, which sparked hundreds of judges supervising the elections threatening to quit, The New York Times reported. The violence at the Cabinet building started after military police attempted to evict a small crowd of people protesting the property.
The security forces aggressive methods has only provoked the crowd, which grew to several at least several hundred, according to several reports.
The recent attack has renewed tensions between Egyptians and the military. Once viewed as a key ally of the government uprising that ousted 30-year ruler Hosni Mubarak , the military is now seen by many to be attempting to delay the process of a fully democratic Egypt.
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The newly established civilian advisory council created to reinforce the legitimacy of the country’s military rulers was politically setback when it suspended its operations following the riots.