CAIRO, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Thousands of Egyptians gathered in Tahrir Square Friday calling for changes in the constitution that would allow the immediate implementation of Islamic law.
About 10,000 demonstrators chanted, "The people want God's law applied," calling on President Mohamed Morsi to act quickly while the constitution is still being formulated, CNN reported.
Morsi's Freedom and Justice Party is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and wants to gradually introduce Sharia law. The Salafist demonstrators want quicker implementation.
Egypt's Coptic Christians are adamantly opposed to the Salafist demands. Copts represent 8 percent to 10 percent of the population.
While some protesters formed human chains or carried banners as they marched through the streets around the square, others collected signatures on a petition demanding the application of Sharia law in the constitution, al-Masry al-Youm reported.
The petition read: "I, the undersigned, accept adding a second clause to Article 2 stating that Sharia is the origin of the Constitution and that no article should overcome or contradict it."
