Saturday, March 10, 2012

Egyptians Hold Anti-US Demonstration in Cairo

Egyptians hold anti-US demo in Cairo

Fri Mar 9, 2012 10:49PM GMT
presstv.ir

Security forces have clashed with Egyptians protesting about US interference in Egypt's internal affairs near the US Embassy in Cairo.

On Friday, a large number of protesters, shouting slogans against the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) and the United States and calling for the departure of the US ambassador, threw stones at the security forces, who threw the stones back at the crowd and used other heavy-handed tactics to disperse the demonstrators.

Earlier, the protesters clashed with supporters of the ruling military council in front of the US Embassy. Dozens of people were injured in the first incident.

One of the main issues for the protesters is the fact that several foreigners accused of meddling in Egypt's internal affairs were allowed to leave the country.

Forty-three foreign and Egyptian activists, including 16 US citizens, have been accused of receiving illegal funds and running unlicensed NGOs in Egypt.

Egyptian officials said the groups were using the funds to fuel unrest in the country and are pursuing a legal case against them.

Last week, under intense US pressure, most of the foreign defendants were permitted to leave the country after posting bail. They were allowed to leave, even though a travel ban had been imposed on them.

The US had threatened to cut the 1.5 billion dollars in financial assistance it provides to Egypt if the issue was not resolved.

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