According to reports, Egyptian military opened gunfire on the pro-Morsi protest camp.
From this event, and everything leading up to it, Egypt has declared a one month, state of national emergency.
Two peaceful protest camps have been turned into unrecognizable war zones, according to CNN, and the violence is still going on.
CNN's Arwa Damon stated:
A number of leaders from the Muslim Brotherhood have been arrested. Egyptian security forces have confirmed they have arrested the eight top leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood.
In this crackdown, Egypt is officially saying 95 people have been killed, and 500 have been wounded.
The Muslim Brotherhood on the other hand, are saying that 200 Morsi supporters have been killed, with over 8000 injured.
AP however put the death toll at 149 people dead, and 1400 injured. So, there are conflicting reports as tends to happen.
Among the dead, Sky News reported that one of their longtime camera men, Mick Deane, was shot and killed.
Along with 26-year-old staff reporter of Gulf News, Habiba Ahmed Abd Elaziz.
It's also being reported that the interim Vice President is resigning.
And this seems to be more of what I feared and expected: Egypt slowly spiraling into a nightmare situation.
Nonetheless, it's important to know that these protests were sit-ins and demonstrations.
A statement from the UN reads:
White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, also condemned the use of violence against protesters, and the emergency laws being instituted; adding that the world was watching, and he urged restraint.
And, I'll recommend hopping on Twitter, and checking the Egypt hash tag (#Egypt), and watching the pictures and videos that are coming in. There is no good in this situation; it is entirely horrendous, and tragic, and basically incomprehensible from my very narrow vantage point. And, it's easy for us to get kinda distracted by our day-to-day lives, but this is an incredibly important moment, and we all need to be paying attention to it.
And, I kinda think that the 30-day timeframe of the state of emergency seems a little bit optimistic. And, it makes me wonder what America would do, other than urging restraint. I mean, the US is a country that (if you research) has given the Egyptian military billions of dollars.
America relies on Egypt as a strategic ally, which makes me wonder what the White House and Congress would do, or stop doing.
But, all in all, it's just a terrible and sad situation, because while everyone is (seemingly) willing to die for their cause, often the ones that do, just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, I guess, in the coming weeks and months, we'll see what happens.
And, while it's important not to discount the Muslim Brotherhood's role in this current situation in Egypt, or the exclusionary philosophies that have prompted many in Egypt to vehemently support the Egyptian police and military's move to evacuate these protests, this is very much about where Egypt is headed in the future.
My condolences go out to the families of these victims, all of the wounded, and all of the Egyptian people.
From this event, and everything leading up to it, Egypt has declared a one month, state of national emergency.
Two peaceful protest camps have been turned into unrecognizable war zones, according to CNN, and the violence is still going on.
CNN's Arwa Damon stated:
A number of leaders from the Muslim Brotherhood have been arrested. Egyptian security forces have confirmed they have arrested the eight top leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood.
In this crackdown, Egypt is officially saying 95 people have been killed, and 500 have been wounded.
The Muslim Brotherhood on the other hand, are saying that 200 Morsi supporters have been killed, with over 8000 injured.
AP however put the death toll at 149 people dead, and 1400 injured. So, there are conflicting reports as tends to happen.
Among the dead, Sky News reported that one of their longtime camera men, Mick Deane, was shot and killed.
Along with 26-year-old staff reporter of Gulf News, Habiba Ahmed Abd Elaziz.
It's also being reported that the interim Vice President is resigning.
And this seems to be more of what I feared and expected: Egypt slowly spiraling into a nightmare situation.
Nonetheless, it's important to know that these protests were sit-ins and demonstrations.
A statement from the UN reads:
White House spokesman, Josh Earnest, also condemned the use of violence against protesters, and the emergency laws being instituted; adding that the world was watching, and he urged restraint.
And, I'll recommend hopping on Twitter, and checking the Egypt hash tag (#Egypt), and watching the pictures and videos that are coming in. There is no good in this situation; it is entirely horrendous, and tragic, and basically incomprehensible from my very narrow vantage point. And, it's easy for us to get kinda distracted by our day-to-day lives, but this is an incredibly important moment, and we all need to be paying attention to it.
And, I kinda think that the 30-day timeframe of the state of emergency seems a little bit optimistic. And, it makes me wonder what America would do, other than urging restraint. I mean, the US is a country that (if you research) has given the Egyptian military billions of dollars.
America relies on Egypt as a strategic ally, which makes me wonder what the White House and Congress would do, or stop doing.
But, all in all, it's just a terrible and sad situation, because while everyone is (seemingly) willing to die for their cause, often the ones that do, just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And, I guess, in the coming weeks and months, we'll see what happens.
And, while it's important not to discount the Muslim Brotherhood's role in this current situation in Egypt, or the exclusionary philosophies that have prompted many in Egypt to vehemently support the Egyptian police and military's move to evacuate these protests, this is very much about where Egypt is headed in the future.
My condolences go out to the families of these victims, all of the wounded, and all of the Egyptian people.
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