Security forces closed Tahrir Square on Saturday afternoon following the announcement of a verdict in the trial of former president Hosni Mubarak, dropping charges of killing protesters during the 2011 revolution.

The closure of the square came after reports that the families of the slain protesters planned to head to Tahrir, the epicentre of protests during the 2011 revolution, to express their rejection of the decision which saw charges dropped against Mubarak and his security aides acquitted.

Mubarak's two sons, Gamal and Alaa, were also acquitted on charges of corrpution on Saturday.

The head of the Cairo traffic authority, Hamdy El-Hadidi, told Al Ahram Arabic news website that security forces have intensified their presence in the roads leading into the square.