Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim has said he is ready to clear Tahrir Square within an hour if Parliament asks him to, and if political forces admit that the protesters remaining in the square are neither activists nor demonstrators wounded during the January uprising.
Tahrir Square was the center of massive demonstrations last year which forced former President Hosni Mubarak to step down and subsequent protests and sit-ins under the rule of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces.
Earlier in March, several political and activist groups announced the suspension of sit-ins in the square due to what some said was the presence of "thugs" and "infiltrators."
"We are going through an extremely critical phase, and I can bet that security efforts being exerted by our ministry are unprecedented," Ibrahim said during a joint press conference with Petroleum Minister Abdullah Ghorab. "Security activities will be doubled over the next period on all levels. Police forces will be provided with all equipment required."
From 20-26 March, the ministry confiscated 326 weapons, apprehended 178 escaped convicts, unveiled 45 gangs, and foiled the smuggling of 2 million tons of fuel oil and 5,575 butane canisters, Ibrahim claimed.
Ibrahim has faced scathing criticisms in recent months for security forces' violence against protesters. Ten people were killed in clashes with security forces around the ministry's main office in downtown Cairo after demonstrators voiced anger over police idleness during a rampage that killed 74 people at the Port Said football match in early February.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
