A brutal scene is unfolding on the streets of Cairo. Journalist Bel Trew is on the scene and is tweeting developments as they occur:
Fucking hell. The police shot at, beat and stripped a man, dragged him across concrete. Dragged him naked, his face scrapping the ground.
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
Praying for this man who is probably being sodomised in the police truck right now. He was naked they dragged him like a piece of meat
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
@Sarahcarr it's live. I'm here and it happened in front of my eyes.
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
They dragged the protester they stripped naked and beat into the other #csf truck. God knows what they're doing to him #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
They took the stripped and beaten protester away. After dragging him along the concrete. I don't know what has happened to him
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
It's brutal brutal here. Police have control of streets firing a lot of shot guns. Beating people they catch viciously. #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
The police were saying 'go get him, go get him' and laughing before they caught the protester, they stripped&dragged on the ground #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
Gunfire continuous. Mixture of sound, birdshot and tear gas. Battle by and in school opposite costa no longer near prez palace #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
I want to repeat the police were laughing and shouting 'go get him' before capturing,stripping,beating and dragging man #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
Watching police picking up rocks as they run. Protesters on roof of school throw down molotov. Police shoot gas over wall of school #Egypt
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 1, 2013
The stripping and beating of the protester was captured on video (warning: graphic):
video: the egyptian police stripping and beating a protestor, while firing birdshot into a crowd from an armored car http://t.co/iQnG6roK
— David D. Kirkpatrick (@ddknyt) February 1, 2013
#Egypt security forces no longer ashamed to do their dirty work in public. Disturbing video.http://t.co/P32U0ORy
— benwedeman (@bencnn) February 1, 2013
More:
Int min orders investigation into dragging and beating naked man
— Samer Al-Atrush (@SameralAtrush) February 1, 2013
Heard at Ittihadiya today: "Dictator after dictator, Mohamed Morsi your turn is next." (rhymes in Arabic). #Egypt
— benwedeman (@bencnn) February 1, 2013
Tweeters are shocked by the assault on the protester’s dignity:
when you strip a man when you strip a woman you strip the nation. #Egypt #morsi #csf
— Amr Khalifa (@Cairo67Unedited) February 1, 2013
Some are likening today’s incident to the much-publicized beating of a girl in a blue bra that took place in Tahrir Square in December 2011:
https://twitter.com/ghazalairshad/status/297442502762442752
Once was blue bra girl. Today naked man. Once were viginity checks. And tomorrow? #Egypt where do u think u're going? http://t.co/jDC0Tqnh
— Claude Guibal (@ClaudeGuibal) February 1, 2013
https://twitter.com/Nadawassef/status/297447749236973569
***
Update: Egyptian state media claims the protester took off his own clothes. Really:
يا لهوي !!!
“@mokhbersahafi: State radio reporter at ittihadiya says the protester took off his clothes !!!”— Samar Al Gamal (@SamarAlGamal) February 1, 2013
Update:
The protester says he was beaten by protesters and helped by the police.
State TV airs segment explaining how 'stripped man' was attacked by protesters and saved by the police. | ONA #Egypt #Morsi
— Egyptocracy (@Egyptocracy) February 2, 2013
The police saved him … by beating him?
Hamada Saber apparently says protesters stripped him and police were helping him,can't confirm who stripped him but know what I saw
— Bel Trew (@Beltrew) February 2, 2013
The infamous poor man in the video was coerced to say the protesters stripped him & the police saved him. Mubarak regime is alive and well.
— The Big Pharaoh (@TheBigPharaoh) February 2, 2013
http://twitter.com/evanchill/statuses/297794187561152512