Hundreds of Egyptian students angered by a mass outbreak of food poisoning at a Cairo university stormed the offices of the country’s top Muslim cleric today.
The Monday outbreak at al-Azhar University forced the hospitalisation of 479 students, Health Ministry official Khaled el-Khateib said.
It occurred after a meal served at the university dormitories in Cairo’s Nasr City district.
The university is affiliated with al-Azhar mosque – the world’s foremost seat of Sunni Muslim learning – and awards degrees in sciences and humanities as well as in religious studies.
Ahmed el-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, whose offices were attacked, is the university’s ultimate authority.
Egypt’s top prosecutor has ordered an investigation into the outbreak.
In today’s protest, thousands of al-Azhar students blocked the Salah Salem road.
The students had also protested on Monday, blocking roads outside their dormitories and chanting slogans against the university management.
This article was reposted from Morning Star.
Photo: Students in Cairo protest the recent outbreak of food poisoning. Some of the signs read, “Down with the administration of negligence.” Mostafa Darwish/AP
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