Dozens protested Thursday in front of the US Embassy in cairo, calling for the release of Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman, leader of the Islamist group Jama'a al-Islamiya, who is detained in the US on allegations of inciting terrorism.
Abdel Rahman's son Abdullah said his father's release is first a human request and second a popular one. he also added that the grand sheikh of Al-Azhar called on US President Barack Obama to release Rahman.
The sheikh's family also demanded, in a statement distributed among protesters, that Obama take "steps in support of the Egyptian revolution." Releasing the sheikh, the statement said, would represent a "real reconciliation between Egypt and the US."
Translated from the Arabic Edition
