A student died and a building was
torched at Egypt's main Islamic university as riot police fired teargas to
break up a strike.
Police
said yesterday they entered eastern Cairo's Al-Azhar campus, the site of
frequent clashes in recent weeks, and deployed around other Egyptian
universities late on Saturday (AEDT) to prevent supporters of ousted president
Mohammed Morsi from intimidating other students trying to take the tests.
Pro-Morsi
activists have called for an exam boycott but deny government claims that they
threatened anyone.
Students
at al-Azhar, a stronghold of Morsi supporters, have been protesting for weeks
against his ouster and a subsequent state crackdown, which saw his Muslim
Brotherhood group declared a terrorist organisation last week. The Brotherhood
dismisses the label and has vowed to keep up its protests against
Egypt-military backed authorities.
Deputy
Prime Minister and Minister of Higher Education Hossam Eissa said authorities
would go after those he said were financing non-peaceful protests on campuses,
and accused the Brotherhood of seeking to derail exams.
"The
aim of the terrorist Brotherhood group is to call off university exams,"
he said.
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