Egypt overshadowed by anti-president protests
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E-mail Xinhua, June 30, 2013
Egypt looks relatively quiet but overshadowed on the eve of a planned mass anti-president protest, following bloody clashes between pro- and anti-president protesters that have killed at least eight people and injured several hundreds nationwide over the past few days.
The main busy spots in the capital Cairo are the iconic Tahrir Square and the streets near the presidential palace in Heliopolis, where opponents of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi erected tents in preparation for June 30 protests, while thousands of their rivals, the president's supporters, gathered outside Rabia al- Adawiya Mosque in Nasr City "to defend legitimacy."
"I am here to support the president and I would sacrifice my blood and my soul for him," said Sayed Hashem, who came from Upper Egypt's Assiut governorate.
The old bearded man told Xinhua outside Rabia al-Adawiya Mosque that "Morsi is not corrupt like his predecessors," blaming his opponents and media for ignoring the president's achievements and focusing only on the negative aspects.
However, in Tahrir Square, thousands of anti-Morsi protesters rallied with hundreds camping in tents, raising flags of Egypt and continuing their sit-in in preparation for the activities on Sunday.
Some residents living near the presidential palace in Heliopolis locked their houses and temporarily moved to other places like their hometowns or summer resorts to avoid the expected clashes and suffocation of tear gas bombs.
"Some of the residents move to live with their relatives in other areas until the protests are over because they cannot feel comfortable at their own places amid clashes and noise," Awad, a doorman of a building right close to the presidential palace, told Xinhua.
Other streets of ever-busy Cairo also appeared unusually gloomy and silent, which is seen by some as a normal reaction to last night's clashes and by others as "the silence before the storm."
Amira Saleh, a lady in her 40s, said Cairo is quiet because people are scared of thugs after they saw last night's deadly clashes.
"Although I disagree with Morsi's administration, it is better than the ex-regime and it could be corrected through criticism and opposition. Any wise person would not call for ousting the president and go back to zero," the lady told Xinhua.
Salma, a saleswoman at a well-known supermarket in Cairo, said that a lot of customers bought large quantities of noodles on the eve of the planned protests.
"I think a lot of people are worried, so they buy noodles to store up in case something wrong happens," she told Xinhua.
However, Saleh said since she is educated, she would not store up food at home like ignorant people. "Storing foodstuff would create a crisis and harm everyone."
Ahmed Abd-Rabbo, an employee at the National Bank of Egypt, said that he is optimistic that nothing bad would happen on Sunday.
"I do not feel scared or worried. I just hope that everything go on peacefully. I pray that God would support the rightful party that works for the best interest of this country," he told Xinhua.
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