Iran Press/ Africa: Egypt is bracing itself for the second weekend of protests on Friday, with authorities stepping up arrests and tightening security in major cities amid calls for a "million-man march" against President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
Egypt's Ministry of Interior warned on Thursday of "decisive" action against any attempts to "destabilize peace" as rights groups say nearly 2,000 people have been arrested since last weekend's rare protests demanding el-Sisi quit, Al Jazeera reported.
Among those arrested was Hassan Nafaa, a political science professor at Cairo University and well-known columnist, who called for the president's departure in a Twitter post.
"I have no doubt that the continuation of el-Sisi's absolute rule will lead to disaster. Egypt's interest requires his departure today before tomorrow," Nafaa said.
Nafaa's arrest on Wednesday followed the detention of Hazem Hosny, a spokesman for former army chief Sami Anan who was jailed last year for attempting to run against el-Sisi in a presidential election.
Khaled Dawoud, the head of Al-Doustor Party who has been a vocal critic of the president's policies, was also arrested.
Security forces have also deployed more troops to major cities, with police stopping and searching pedestrians on key thoroughfares and squares. Authorities have also blocked news websites and disrupted access to messaging platforms, according to monitoring groups.
Amnesty International has called on world leaders to stop a repressive crackdown on opposition protesters in Egypt.
“The government of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is clearly shaken to its core by the outbreak of protests and has launched a full-throttle clampdown to crush demonstrations and intimidate activists, journalists, and others into silence,” said Najia Bounaim, North Africa Campaigns Director at Amnesty International on Sep. 25.
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