Egypt: Protesters issue ultimatum to Morsi
Tamarod movement demands that president resign by Tuesday evening, threatens to organize civil revolt following Sunday's pass protests. Demonstrators call for widespread labor strikes
In a statement issued Monday morning, the movement threatened it would call on the masses to storm the presidential palace in Cairo if the president does not resign.
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However, the palace appears undaunted by the threats. A source who spoke with the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper said that Sunday's protests should not be taken as an indication of the extent of support for Morsi.
Sunday's mass protest in Tahrir Square (Photo: AP)
He estimated that the protests will slowly die down and denied reports that the president is planning to make concessions to appease the protesters.
Protesters have stormed and ransacked the Cairo headquarters of Muslim Brotherhood Islamist group.
An Associated Press video journalist at the scene says protesters stormed the six-story building in an eastern Cairo district Monday morning, leaving the heavily fortified villa with furniture and files.
Footage on local TV networks showed smashed windows and smoke billowing out of the building. One protester was seen removing the Muslim Brotherhood sign from the building's front wall.
Meanwhile, Egypt's Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper reported that 14 people were killed and 900 were injured since protests began on June 30, according to healthy ministry data. The figures apparently also refer to the weekend demonstrations. Egyptian medical sources say at least five were killed on Sunday alone.
Sunday morning saw young Egyptians disrupting traffic around Tahrir Square with several hundreds still on site.
14 people killed during protests (Photo: Reuters)
Protesters are gearing up for a second day of action, after hundreds of thousands thronged the streets of Cairo and cities around the country and marched on the presidential palace.
Some spent the night in dozens of tents pitched at the capital's central Tahrir Square and the palace, positions organizers say they will hold until Morsi resigns.
Protesters call for labor strikes (Photo: AP)
Protesters are calling widespread labor strikes to start Monday, although unions have yet to give a read out regarding how much they plan to participate.
Aside from renewed presence at Tahrir and the palace, organizers are also calling for a sit-in at the Cabinet building, interim parliament, and another presidential site where Morsi was staying during Sunday's rally.
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