Egypt's Rodney King?

In 1991, George Holliday videotaped from his balcony four police officers brutally beating Rodney King--when acquittals were handed out to the police officers involved, the 1992 Los Angeles riots are said to have begun.  During those riots, Rodney King famously asked, "Can't we all just get along?"

This weekends events have given Cairo their own "Rodney King", and "getting along" may have gone as quickly as his video went viral.

Friday, February 1, 2013, video streamed live onto Cairo television screens from several different sources, including this "balcony" video, Hamada Saber was shown dragged, stripped, and beaten by security forces before being thrown into a police vehicle.


The video quickly was uploaded and tweeted, messaged, and sent through social networking and blogs throughout the region and beyond.  The media was outraged, the events after the video went live intensified, and the Interior Minister quickly issued a regretful statement that included remarks that this does not represent the security forces as a whole.  Today, Saturday, February 2, protestors gathered outside of court buildings and the prosecutors offices to denounce the beating and other brutal treatment  that protestors are said to have received throughout Friday's demonstrations that resulted in 1 casualty and as many as 90 wounded.

To be fair & clear, and to echo some of the comments of the Interior Minister, those security forces were out trying to stay alive just as much as to protect government buildings.  Though many protestors gathered to make statements, there were clearly many who showed up with intent to make trouble.  There is all the more video demonstrating vandalism, burning tires, throwing molotov cocktails, rocks, and whatever they could to strike at the security forces preventing their advance.  Whether the "new thugs on the Black-Bloc," or Ultras who seem to be in the middle of any potential fight with the authorities, or whoever--these individuals have not yet given democracy and diplomacy an opportunity to develop and further sink Egypt into all sorts of chaos.

However, what is seen on the video tape is clearly more than self-defense, and obviously excessive force on a defenseless individual by more than enough officers needed to subdue Hamada Saber.

The video is clear, though not clear enough for identification of "the alleged security officers" in the video--I quote "alleged" there because, in an unbelievable news story tonight, THE PROSECUTORS NOW CLAIM IT WAS OTHER PROTESTORS WHO STRIPPED AND BEAT THE MAN.  The story also includes that the Interior Minister personally called to apologize for what he suffered, AND that the ministry would help him with his "healthcare and finding a job after his recovery".  It is this link of benefits and the obviously contrary video evidence that has Egyptian tweeters in disbelief.

Meanwhile the government is quick to get the media into the man's hospital room with smiling officials standing by as Saber states that the security forces actually saved him from the protestors beating him.

Though the opposition parties were rhetorically alongside of Morsi last night to denounce any violence and to urge demonstrators to remain peaceful, today they have publicly stated they agree with the call to the end of President Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood's authoritarian regime.

Two years after the Revolution that led to the removal of Hosni Mubarak, will the "Egyptian Rodney King" lead to another revolution?


Thank you for your continued interest, prayers, and encouragement.  Continue to pray for Egypt and the people of the Middle East...