Hossam Kamel, the dean of Cairo University, stripped the dean of the Faculty of Mass Communications, Sami Abdel Aziz, of his financial and administrative powers on Sunday.
The move follows nearly two months of student protests demanding the resignation of Aziz, who is accused of being a member of the dissolved National Democratic Party and a supporter of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Meanwhile, Kamel transferred Aziz's responsibilities to Undersecretary for Student Affairs Hassan Emad.
Cairo University on Thursday expelled nine students from the Faculty of Mass Communications for participating in demonstrations demanding the removal of Aziz.
On Saturday, after meeting with the former head of the Journalism Department, Awatef Abdul Rahman, Kamel pledged to reach a satisfactory solution to the dispute.
The decision to relieve Aziz of his duties comes after the university was widely criticized by faculty members and human rights organizations for expelling the students and for referring the professors accused of involvement in the protests to a disciplinary board. Faculty staff members had threatened to escalate their actions against the university administration if their demands were not met.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
