Scuffles erupt in Egypt over court ruling on Mubarak-era officials

PanARMENIAN.Net - Tensions between rival Egyptian political factions erupted into scuffles on Friday, October 12 during a protest against a court ruling that acquitted officials from Hosni Mubarak's era of ordering a camel charge against demonstrators in last year's uprising, Reuters said.

While the activists were united in anger at the court ruling, supporters and opponents of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi threw stones and bottles at each other, showing feelings still run high between rival groups trying to shape the new Egypt after decades of autocracy.

The charge by men on camels and horseback was one of the most violent incidents during the uprising that ousted Mubarak in February 2011. The case has been closely watched by those seeking justice for the hundreds killed in the revolt.

A court on Wednesday said it did not find evidence to convict the defendants in the case, including top Mubarak-era officials such as former lower house of parliament speaker Fathi Sorour and Safwat Sherif, a longtime Mubarak aide.

More than 2,000 demonstrators were in Cairo's Tahrir Square and a nearby street by Friday afternoon. Some demonstrators pulled down a scaffold podium that had been erected on one side of the square for speeches.

A new government is in place but Egypt does not have a new constitution or parliament. Islamists and liberals have been at loggerheads over the constitution, still at the drafting stage and which must be in place before a parliamentary vote is held.