Egypt Broadens Crackdown in Bid to Prevent a Repeat of Protests
- Mass arrests occur in wake of last weekend’s demonstrations
- Authorities caution that any unrest will be met by ‘firmness’
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Racing to prevent a repeat of shock protests, Egypt’s authorities allegedly rounded up over 1,900 people, choked social media and issued a stark warning about the uncompromising response that awaits any demonstrations on Friday.
The crackdown is typical of the no-holds-barred attitude to dissent under President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi. With just a few hundred people having joined last weekend’s protests, it shows how seriously authorities take even a hint of a return to the unrest that roiled the Arab country in 2011 and 2013.