Supporters of Egypt's ousted President Mohammed Morsi chant slogans as they attend a protest outside Rabaa Al-Adawiya mosque, where protesters have installed a camp and hold daily rallies at Nasr City in Cairo (Photo: Reuters)
Head of the National Council for Women, Mervat El-Tellawy, has slated the “use of women and children” as human shields at Islamist protests.
At a press conference held on Friday afternoon, El-Tellawy criticised an image of children at a pro-Morsi sit-in holding shrouds with "future martyr" written on them, saying that such practices will lead to a generation of “terrorists.”
The head of the state body also criticised the international media's “bias” and lack of coverage of the issue.
Supporters of former president Mohamed Morsi have been criticised over the images of children from an ongoing pro-Morsi sit-in at Rabaa Al-Adawiya mosque in eastern Cairo.
Egypt’s interior ministry on Thursday warned pro-Morsi protesters to leave sit-ins in Cairo and Giza, saying that those who did would be granted a safe exit.
El-Tellawy accused the Muslim Brotherhood of using children from orphanages to participate in pro-Morsi marches.
She called on mothers at the pro-Morsi sit-in to reconsider what they are doing to their children, which she said “contradicts religion.”
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) published a statement on Tuesday expressing deep concern over reports of children injured or killed at demonstrations.
“Disturbing images of children taken during street protests indicate that, on some occasions, children have been deliberately used and put at risk as potential witnesses to or victims of violence,” read the statement, which did not address or mention specific protests or political groups.
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