Mazhar Shaheen, an imam at the Omar Makram Mosque who often gives a Friday sermon in Tahrir Square, called for the prosecution of anti-Morsy demonstrators during his sermon today.
He called the protesters, who took to the streets in governorates across Egypt today to protest the Muslim Brotherhood-controlled state, “advocates of sabotaging the country and burning public facilities.”
"Today the Egyptian people will know the real traitor to their revolution and the agents of foreign countries who attempt to sow discord to further their own interests. The world will know who really belongs to the soil of this country and who works in favor of Israel, fools the people and negotiations suspicious deals for their personal benefit," Shaheen said.
Shaheen denied being linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, saying: "I do not defend a person, a group, a political party or movement. I defend the legitimacy and the choice of people through [elections]."
He called for unity among revolutionary forces to safeguard the objectives and principles of the 25 January revolution so that Egypt does not fall prey to its enemies.
The preacher echoed the oath of the revolution, and the people chanted with him: "We swear by God the Almighty to maintain the objectives and the principles of the revolution and the blood of its martyrs, and to live and die for it."
The congregation should form popular committees to protect public facilities in Tahrir Square, including the Egyptian Museum, Dobara Palace, the Mugamma and Omar Makaram Mosque, Shaheen concluded.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
