As the country continues to reel from events in Maspero on 9 October, many people in the streets of Downtown Cairo steadfastly refuse to believe that the military was at fault in the clashes that saw 25 killed.
As Copts marched towards Maspero, the building that houses Egyptian state-owned TV, to protest against attacks on churches, most notably last month’s attack on an Aswan church, showers of stones were thrown down on protesters from a bridge. Shortly afterwards, military armored personnel carriers (APCs) drove into protesters, running over some, while guns were fired.
Sounding out opinions on the street, Al-Masry Al-Youm interviewed many who absolved the military from all blame. They said the events were caused by a surreptitious foreign plot, remnants of the old regime or violent protesters who started the attack.
“What happened yesterday was chaos and destruction by people trying to destroy Egypt. They were neither Muslim nor Christian; this was arranged from abroad, possibly from Europe, the US or Israel. There were youths in the march who instigated this, and only God can sort this out,” Mohamed Abouda, a truck driver, said.
Abouda’s account resonates with Prime Minister Essam Sharaf’s televised speech, early on Monday, where he blamed the violence on "hidden hands" seeking to threaten Egypt’s stability.
For some, remnants of the Mubarak regime are still seeking to destabilize the country.
“I don’t think protesters would go and fire at security forces in any protest, whether Muslim or Christian. Remnants of the regime are behind this. Elections are coming up and they don’t want stability. They are the ones who stand to benefit from this,” said Ibrahim Zakariya, a surgeon.
No one interviewed doubted the military’s claim that it didn’t initiate or deploy any violence, a narrative well-engineered by state-owned media, which called on protesters to take to the streets to defend Egypt's army from attack by a group of armed protesters.
“The military didn’t attack people, they would never do that. And if they'd have wanted to, they would have done so months ago. The military was dispersing the protest and people fired at them. We need to move on from this as soon as possible, have the elections, then a constitution and a president in place,” said Zakariya.
In fact, some were confident that the Copts were responsible for stirring up the violence.
“The two sides are accusing each other, but I have one question: There was a priest, called Matias [whose picture was plastered on the front page of Al-Mesaa newspaper over a banner emblazoned with the words 'Christian Martyrs Brigade'] who was inciting Christians to create trouble. Where did they get the wood and stones they were carrying? I’m not saying they started it, but they did seem prepared,” said a newspaper vendor who wanted to remain anonymous.
The claims only add bitterness to an already inflamed Coptic community. Many in the country's minority of about 10 percent have been furious with the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, and the events at Maspero have simply deepend their fury.
“Do people think that protesters went to the march armed with guns? Did any television channel show any footage of protesters firing at the military? Yes, protesters retaliated, but they weren’t armed. It’s the fault and responsibility of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces,” said Coptic clothes designer Henry Williams who was present at the march.
The army wants to stay in power longer," he concluded.
