adminEGYPT’S interim Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim has dismissed the head of the country’s prison authority Mostafa Baz from his post, officials say. Baz, who had been in the post since June 10, was sacked yesterday, a security official said without providing any details about the decision.
Baz had reportedly facilitated meetings between jailed members of the Muslim Brotherhood including the leaders and people outside the prison.
The Muslim Brotherhood faced tough crackdown following the July 3 ouster of President Mohamed Morsi by the country’s powerful army.
On July 5, Brotherhood supreme leader Mohamed Badie said the coup against Morsi was illegal and millions would remain on the street until he is reinstated as president.
Badie vowed to “complete the revolution” that toppled the Western-backed regime of former Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak in 2011.
The army-appointed government has launched a bloody crackdown on Morsi supporters and arrested more than 2 000 Brotherhood members, including Badie, who was detained on August 20.
About 1 000 people were killed in a week of violence between Morsi anti-coup protesters and security forces after police dispersed their protest camps in a deadly operation on August 14.
Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says at least five journalists have been killed and 80 others arrested in Egypt since the military ouster of Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi in July.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Reporters sans Frontières said 40 media professionals were also attacked by security forces or demonstrators including supporters and opponents of Morsi in the North African country.
The statement also called on Egypt’s interim government to protect journalists and media professionals amid simmering tension in Egypt.
“It is unacceptable that journalists are subject to continued targeting, whereas they should be granted the right conditions to perform their duties without fear, in complete independence and away from any political context,” the statement said.
It noted that Egyptian security forces have raided several offices belonging to media channels and closed them since Morsi’s removal.
The statement was released by the Paris-based organisation after an Egyptian court ordered a Muslim Brotherhood TV channel to be taken off the air permanently on charges of attempting to cause disunity in the country. — Presstv.
Online Reporter