2020 Egyptian protests

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The 2020 Egyptian Revolution, also known as the Gallabiya uprising, were decentralised^[1] street protests in Egypt that started on 20 September 2020, the anniversary of the 2019 Egyptian protests, calling for Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to resign.^[2] Protest locations included Cairo, Giza,^[3] Suez, Kafr El Dawwar, Alexandria, Aswan, El Qanater El Khayreya,^[4] Faiyum, Minya and Luxor.^[2] The sixth day of protests, on 25 September, was called a "Day of Rage".^[1]

Background[]

Mass protests in the Egyptian revolution of 2011 led to the demission of President Hosni Mubarak, the 2012 Egyptian presidential election won by Mohamed Morsi, the 2012–2013 Egyptian protests against the Morsi presidency, the 2013 Egyptian coup d'état which overthrew Morsi, the August 2013 Rabaa massacre by the security forces and army led by general Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and an authoritarian government under Sisi, who was elected president with no serious opponents in 2014 and 2018. In September 2019, Mohamed Ali, an Egyptian construction contractor living in exile in Spain, circulated videos accusing el-Sisi and the military of extensive corruption and called for street protests to force el-Sisi to resign.^[5] Protests took place on 20–21 September 2019, after which Amnesty International described the Sisi government being "shaken to its core",^[6] Protests continued on 27 September. The Egyptian authorities responded with 4300 arrests of protestors and lawyers.^[7][8] Well-known arrestees included the Egyptian blogger, software developer and activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who had not participated in the 2019 Egyptian protests, arrested on unknown charges,^[9] and his lawyer , director of the human rights organisation Adalah Center for Rights and Freedoms.^[10] Both were tortured in welcome parades in Tora Prison.^[11][12] Amnesty described the crackdown as the biggest during the el-Sisi presidency.^[12]

August 2020 call for protests[]

A Twitter campaign with an Arabic hashtag equivalent to #We Don't Want You started on 29 August 2020 after el-Sisi suggested that a referendum could be called to dismiss him from the presidency if people were unsatisfied with his decisions. The campaign, supported by Mohamed Ali,^[3] called for el-Sisi to step down and for protests on 20 September 2020, the anniversary of the 2019 protests.^[13] Housing demolotions were another key factor motivating the protests in poor communities, both urban and rural.^[14]

Egyptian security forces attempted to prevent protests by arresting political figures, including , and activists, especially in Suez. Cafes were forced to close.^[3]

Timeline[]

September 2020[]

Protests started on 20 September in Giza and in several suburbs in Cairo, calling for el-Sisi to step down. Authorities' reactions included live bullets and tear gas.^[3] Protests calling for el-Sisi's resignation also took place in Suez, Kafr El Dawwar, Alexandria, Aswan, and El Qanater El Khayreya.^[4]

In Aswan, security forces attacked the protestors, who set a presidential building on fire in response. People in Kadiya in Giza Governorate, angry at the demolitions of buildings claimed by the government to have been illegally built, turned over a police truck.^[4]

Protests continued on 21 and 22 September. Protest locations on 22 September included Giza, Faiyum, Minya, Luxor and Aswan.^[2] In the village of al-Kadaya in Atfih, protestors refused a police objection to the holding of a protest by overturning a police car and setting it on fire. In al-Hawarta in Minya Governorate, protestors pushed a police vehicle into a canal.^[2]

Calls for more protests continued, calling for a "Friday of Anger" (or "Day of Rage"^[1]) protests. Mohamed Ali claimed that the numbers of protestors were rising daily. Ali argued in favour of a critical protest mass, stating "If five million people took to the streets, no one would be arrested at all."^[15]

On 25 September, protests took place in Cairo, Giza, Luxor and Damietta Governorate after the Friday prayer session, again calling for el-Sisi to resign.^[16][1] Civil disobedience techniques used by protestors included burning tyres to block roads.^[1]

Videos posted on social media since 20 September appeared to show several demonstrations involving up to several dozen people in different parts of the country.^[17]

Confrontations between police and protestors continued on 30 September in the village of al-Awamiya in Luxor, with a fatal shooting of a protestor. The sequence of events started with troops and armoured vehicles arriving at the village. Police raided al-Rawi's home, trying to arrest Awais al-Rawi's younger brother. A police officer insulted and slapped al-Rawi's father, who objected to the arrest. Awais al-Rawi objected verbally about the treatment of his father and the argument escalated. A police officer shot Awais al-Rawi four times using a "side arm", once in the face, killing him. The funeral took place the same day. Mourners chanted against the police and el-Sisi, calling el-Sisi "the enemy of God". Police fired warning shots and teargas and arrested 20 funeral participants. Mourners kidnapped and beat a police officer. The officer was released after hours of negotiation between police and tribal elders.^[18][19]

A video of the funeral was posted under a trending hashtag with the Arabic equivalent of "Friday we're coming out in our millions." The officer suspected of the shooting of Awais al-Rawi was suspended from duty, according to a leak from the prosecutor's office.^[18][19]

October 2020[]

Between 3 and 6 October, massive demonstrations in governances against the government and poverty rates in the country spread with the injury of one person. Clashes were witnessed across Alexandria and in narrow suburbs of Cairo. Textile workers and perfume makers went of strike in their hundreds. Anger rose up again. Mass detentions were made in 7–8 October due to protests against the economy. Bread protests were witnessed across Egypt for the second time in 2020. Bullets were seen fired at protesters, who threw stones and pelted eggs. DW News and Middle East Monitor claimed that the protests against prices of bread, eggs and bananas were not the first for the year.

Large-scale demonstrations on 26–27 October, scattered across the nation, kicked off^{[citation needed]} after the French president, Emmanuel Macron described the murder of Samuel Paty as "a typical Islamist terrorist attack"^[20] and said that Paty "was killed for teaching children freedom of speech".^[21]

November 2020[]

Protests by Sudanese migrants and refugees against the brutal killing of a child was met with arrest and violence with tear gas and water cannon fired at the demonstrators. There has been no confirmation over deaths and injuries during the peaceful protests. Amnesty.org reported the peaceful protests on 4–5 November.^[22]

Coordination[]

Rutgers University law professor Sahar Aziz described the protests as decentralised, with no leadership by known opposition groups.^[1]

The uprising has been labeled the galabiya uprising due to the protests taking place mostly in rural areas and Upper Egypt where there is less security than in the main squares in big cities.^[18]

Deaths and injuries[]

One protestor in the 25 September protests in al-Blida in Giza Governorate, Sami Wagdy Bashir, was killed, and three others were wounded, according to the human rights group .^[1]

Detentions[]

On 23 September 2020, the number of people detained as a result of the protests was estimated as 200 by Middle East Monitor.^[2] Among these, 150, including 14 minors according to the Belady Foundation, appeared at State Security institutions and were charged with "belonging to a terrorist organization, spreading false news, and misuse of social media.^[23]

Four Warraq Island protestors were arrested in the Warraq Island protest ongoing since 2017.^[23]

Khaled Ali and other lawyers stated that there was similar confusion to the arrests following the 2019 protests, with difficulty in contacting the detainees' families.^[23]

On 28 September 2020, the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms said that at least at least 382 people had been detained since 20 September.^[17]

Fake protests[]

According to Mada Masr, (UMSG), which is owned by one of the Egyptian intelligence agencies (Mukhabarat, military intelligence, National Security Agency) and owns Youm7, showed the fake protests videos, including one of a protest in Nazlit al-Samman in Giza Governorate. UMSG sent the videos to Al Jazeera and to international media associated with the Muslim Brotherhood, including El Sharq TV. Both Al Jazeera and El Sharq broadcast the videos, presenting them as genuine. UMSG presented this as evidence that media were careless in verifying the authenticity of their material.^[24]

Waves of protests[]

The first wave of rallies were April-May. The second wave of rallies were June-August. The third wave of demonstrations and manifestations and remonstrations were in September-October. Riots were reported by some and some have disagreed. The government hasn't contained the protests really until end of October.

References[]