Activists who backed Mursi's fall turn against military

By Yasmine Saleh

CAIRO Thu Feb 20, 2014 10:27am EST


(Reuters) - Their campaign against Islamist President Mohamed Mursi helped the army topple Egypt's first freely elected leader, but some leaders of the Tamarud movement have broken away, saying the military threatens democracy.

The split in Tamarud (Rebellion) is a sign of growing public anger against the army-backed government installed after Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi deposed Mursi in July, following a Tamarud-organized petition and mass protests against him.

Human rights groups have criticized a fierce state crackdown on Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood since then, saying it includes mass arrests and torture, charges the authorities deny.

"We wanted the army to help us oust Mursi, not take over power itself," said Mohamed Fawzi, leader of a splinter faction calling itself Tamarud 2 Get Liberated, told Reuters. "The army's role is to protect and guard the state, not to rule."

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/20/us-egypt-politics-tamarud-idUSBREA1J1E420140220