Groups sue Egyptian military over violence

CAIRO, July 26 (UPI) -- Two leading movements in Egypt said they will sue the country's military government for allegedly inciting violence against citizens.

Kefaya ("Enough") and the 6th of April youth movement have accused generals of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of inciting violence against citizens in the arrest of a number of protesters during clashes Saturday in the Cairo neighborhood of Abbassiya, Bikya Masr reported Tuesday.

Protesters from Tahrir Square who have been conducting a sit-in since July 8 demanding reforms and an end to military rule, marched on the armed forces' headquarters, where clashes between residents and protesters left more than 300 injured in violence many of the protesters blamed on earlier statements from the military.

The military government had accused the 6th of April movement of planning to weaken Egypt's stability and drive a wedge between the people and the armed forces, and said the group was receiving funding from abroad.

Both the 6th of April group and Kefaya have denied such charges and subsequently filed lawsuits, saying the military had defamed them.

"The SCAF should have met the demands of the revolution and tried [former President Hosni] Mubarak and the killers instead of releasing inciting statements against a patriotic youth movement that took it upon itself to fight injustice, corruption and tyranny," Ahmed Maher, the general coordinator of 6th of April, said.