Thousands of Egyptians on Friday demanded the sacking of three provincial governors who had served in the police force of deposed President Hosni Mubarak, testing the authority of the new government. The biggest protest was held in Qena province in southern Egypt, where some 5,000 people gathered around the office of governor Emad Mikhail to demand his resignation.
Mikhail is one of two Christian governors appointed by the military generals who now rule Egypt and the protests in Qena have been going on for a week as Egyptians flex their newly found political muscle after Mubarak's ouster. Police brutality was one of the factors that ignited the mass protests that led to Mubarak's resignation in February.
Protesters torched several police stations and former Interior Minister Habib el-Adli is now on trial for corruption and the violent crackdown on the uprising, which included the use of snipers and thugs against unarmed demonstrators. On Friday, the police and army tightened security around Qena's churches, but they remained on the sidelines of the anti-government protest, a stand unthinkable during Mubarak's authoritarian, 30-year rule.
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