In the early hours of Wednesday morning, the spark of anger was renewed as young demonstrators in the western governorate of Al-Wadi Al-Gadeed clashed with security forces and the police. The clashes continued for several hours.
The confrontations started outside the police station. All security and fire department personnel were deployed to protect the city's police headquarters after the clashes intensified. Demonstrators were able to set the police station on fire, completely destroying it, and the adjoining prison. The fires destroyed all paper records held at the fire department, prosecutor's office and most of the traffic violation case files.
The city's National Democratic Party headquarters was also set on fire as were surrounding structures, such as the Lawyers' Syndicate.
As the fires raged, employees of the court and prosecutor's office attempted to rescue the remaining papers.
So far, the clashes between police and demonstrators have resulted in two deaths and 35 injuries with some of the casualties taken by ambulance to the Assiut University hospital. Those killed have been named as Mustafa Said Bilal and Kitan Abdel Rahman Khadr.
The confrontations continue with intensity, fueled by the police's use of live ammunition against the demonstrators.
The demonstrations are the first large ones against the regime in the normally quiet governorate, 500 km south of Cairo.
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