Female activist killed during protest in Cairo


An Egyptian female activist was gunned down on Saturday during a protest near downtown Cairo's Tahrir Square."A female protestor fell dead and we're currently examining her body to find the cause of death," Health Ministry Spokesman Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar told The Anadolu Agency.The leftist Popular Alliance Party-which organized the protest-identified the victim on Twitter as Shaimaa al-Sabbagh.It said the activist was shot and killed by birdshot during the protest."Several protesters were also arrested, including the party's secretary-general, Talaat Fahmi," the party added.According to eyewitnesses, dozens of protesters staged a march in downtown Cairo on the way to Tahrir Square.They said march participants were carrying flowers and Egyptian flags to mark the January 25 revolution that brought to an end in 2011 the autocracy of ex-President Hosni Mubarak."Police then fired teargas to disperse march participants and gunshots were heard," one witness told AA.He said he could not identify the source of the gunfire."Ambulances were seen rushing toward the scene amid news that a female protestor was killed and several others wounded," he added.Some of Egypt's revolutionary movements have called for marking the fourth anniversary of the revolution on Sunday amid warnings against law-breaking by the Interior Ministry.On Thursday, clashes erupted between policemen and demonstrators near Tahrir Square too.Tahrir Square has turned into a no-go zone for demonstrators since the ouster by the army of elected President Mohamed Morsi in July of 2013.