Female students at Al-Azhar University in the Nile Delta city of Zagazig on Sunday staged a sit-in on campus, claiming they had been assaulted by campus security after refusing to submit to body searches.
Police eventually dispersed the protesters, arresting ten male students that had been supporting their female colleagues.
According to one protester, female students were beaten by campus police after they asked to be searched by female security personnel.
Another student said protesters had been dispersed with fire hoses, claiming that ambulances had been prevented from aiding students injured in the melee. Only one student, reportedly suffering from internal bleeding, was allowed to be taken to hospital, the student said.
Nevertheless, female students have continued to demonstrate off campus, calling for the dismissal of University Dean Abdel Aziz Gibril for allowing the violations. They have also called on Al-Azhar Grand Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb to protect them from alleged security excesses.
According to one anonymous security source, students pelted security personnel with stones, injuring two men.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
