Outrage over woman's beating fuels new Egypt protests

Egyptian protests turn violent

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: The United States calls on security forces, protesters to refrain from violence
• A video of a woman's beating fuels new anger in Cairo
• "Our troops do not just attack people for no reason," military spokesman says
• The protests have left 11 dead and 500 wounded since Friday

Cairo (CNN) -- Pro-democracy demonstrators battled Egyptian police for a third straight day Sunday, their anger stoked by images of a military police officer stomping on a woman's exposed stomach over the weekend.
The latest round of street clashes has left at least 10 people dead and 500 wounded since Friday, said Dr. Hisham Sheeha, a spokesman for Egypt's health ministry. An 11th person, a boy arrested Saturday, died in police custody from his wounds, the boy's attorney, Ragia Omran, said Sunday.
Cairo's stock exchange plunged amid the new turmoil, while Saturday's images of the woman's beating appeared to draw more people to the streets.
"I will go down and fight the army and retrieve the honor of this woman and those martyrs killed for the sake of Egypt's future," taxi driver Ahmed Fahmy told CNN.
The woman and a male companion were set upon by more than 20 police officers during Saturday's demonstrations in Cairo. She been dressed in a traditional robe and headscarf -- but as police clubbed her and dragged her down the street, those items were pulled away, exposing her midriff and blue brassiere in a country known for its Islamic conservatism.
Then one of the police officers aimed a foot at her upper abdomen and stamped squarely on it, while another officer jumped on the man as he lay on the pavement nearby.
"The army were like vultures who found a prey," said Mohamed Zeidan, who filmed the beating from a balcony overlooking Tahrir Square. He said after he stopped filming the beating out of fear of being discovered, "The soldiers even beat an older couple who tried to help her up."
A CNN crew that managed to escape Saturday's chaos witnessed other beatings, with children, the elderly and people on their way to work finding themselves on the end of police truncheons.
Images of the woman's treatment were splashed across the front pages of Egyptian newspapers on Sunday and zipped around the world on social media networks. But a spokesman for the military, which has ruled Egypt since February's ouster of longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak, had no apologies.

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"What was woman like her doing in a conflict zone?" asked the spokesman, Maj. Mohamed Askar. "She must have participated in the attacks on the military and the Cabinet."
Askar questioned why the woman has not come forward to identify herself.
"Our troops do not just attack people for no reason," he said. "If she had nothing to hide then she would have presented herself. Where is she?"
Two people who know her, including the man seen being beaten alongside her in the video, told CNN the woman is a political activist and student. She does not want to speak to reporters now, but a journalist who saw the incident and was beaten as well said the woman suffered "serious bruises and cuts" as a result.
"I started to run, but she froze and fell to the ground when another protester bumped into her," said Hassan Mahmoud, the journalist. "I tried to help her get up, but the soldiers were brutal even when I told them I was a journalist. They even continued to beat her after her body was exposed."
Some Egyptians questioned the authenticity of the video. Cairo businessman Shehab Ali said there was "something fishy" about it to him.
"The army officer is wearing a pair of sneakers, which is not standard military attire considering they are all in full gear and wearing flak jackets," he said. "And how come the woman is not wearing a t-shirt or anything else under the traditional Arabic robe, although it's freezing cold and winter now?"
But cabdriver Fahmy said the images brought tears to his eyes.
"I grew up admiring our army and chanted, 'The army and the people, one hand,' " he said. "This seems like the enemy."
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the reports of violence on Sunday and said her thoughts are with the families of those killed or injured.
"I urge Egyptian security forces to respect and protect the universal rights of all Egyptians, including the rights to peaceful free expression and assembly ... Those who are protesting should do so peacefully and refrain from acts of violence," she said in a statement.
Tahrir Square has been the epicenter of anti-government demonstrations since last January, when the revolt against Mubarak began. Fresh protests sprouted in November, when the generals named Mubarak-era premier Kamal Ganzouri as a caretaker prime minister until parliamentary elections are complete.
Hundreds of police and troops swept through the plaza on Saturday, barricading nearby streets, chasing off protesters and setting tents on fire. Authorities arrested 14 people Friday and 150 on Saturday, nine of them women, said Adel Saeed, the spokesman for the general prosecutor's office.
"They have been accused of inciting violence, resisting arrest, throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks at security forces, burning public property," Saeed said.
Sunday, demonstrators hurled more rocks and Molotov cocktails and police and soldiers, injuring 58 of them, Interior Ministry spokesman Gen. Marwan Mustapha said.
Protesters captured an army officer in uniform and beat him before debating whether to swap him for a demonstrator who has been captured by the military. Several newly elected lawmakers and religious leaders from Cairo's al-Azhar University tried to negotiate a truce between protesters and security forces, but failed and were asked to leave.
The Egyptian stock market went into a nosedive amid the latest violence, losing 6 billion Egyptian pounds (about $1 billion) at its opening Sunday and finishing down nearly 3.5%.
Ganzouri criticized the unrest as an "attack on revolution" Saturday and condemned protesters for throwing stones and damaging public property. He also denied that security forces were using live ammunition against demonstrators.
In addition, 213-year-old Egyptian maps and other artifacts were destroyed after a library in Cairo was set ablaze during Saturday's clashes, officials said.
The original manuscript of the "description of Egypt" and "irreplaceable maps and historical manuscripts preserved by many generations since the building of the Scientific Center in August 1798 during the French Campaign" were destroyed in the fire, Ganzouri said in a statement.

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Il dead of heart attack, state media reports

The founder of the communist nation, Kim Jong Il had been in power since 1994 .

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: Kim's funeral will be held on December 28, state media reports
• NEW: South Korea's president cancels all planned events, local Yonhap media reports
• Kim died of a heart attack while on a train, North Korea's state news agency reports
• Kim Jong Il was the son of Kim Il Song, the founder of the communist nation

(CNN) -- North Korea's enigmatic leader Kim Jong Il -- who, after succeeding his father 17 years ago, captained his poor, closed nation and antagonized its enemies -- has died, state media reported Monday.
Kim, 69, passed away at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, state media reported.
A broadcaster reported that Kim died due to "overwork" after "dedicating his life to the people."
Kim died of "great mental and physical strain" while in a train during a "field guidance tour," North Korea's state-run KCNA news agency reported.
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More specifically, the agency reported that Kim suffered a heart attack and couldn't be saved despite the use of "every possible first-aid measure."
He had been treated for "cardiac and cerebrovascular diseases for a long period," KCNA noted.

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His funeral will be held December 28 and the national mourning period extends until December 29, said the news agency.
North Korean and communist party officials "released a notice on Saturday informing" members of the Workers' Party of Korea, military "and all other people" of Kim's passing, according to KCNA.
All South Korean military units have been placed on "emergency alert" following Kim's death, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap. South Korean officials have not noticed any unusual activity from North Korea, the agency reported early Monday afternoon.
Kim's death also prompted South Korean President Lee Myung-bak to cancel all events on his schedule, Yonhap said.
The White House, meanwhile, released a statement saying they are "closely monitoring reports" of Kim's death and are "in close touch with our allies in South Korea and Japan."
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"We remain committed to stability on the Korean peninsula, and to the freedom and security of our allies," the White House said in a statement.
The son of Kim Il Song, the founder of the communist nation, Kim Jong Il had been in power since 1994 when his father died of a heart attack at age 82.
The enigmatic leader was a frequent thorn in the side of neighboring South Korea, as well as the United States. There have been reports in recent years about his health, as well as that power will be transitioned to his son, Kim Jong Un.
North Korea's nuclear program -- and international attempts to hinder its nuclear weaponry potential -- put Kim at odds with many world leaders in recent years, as did his governing style.
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Under his leadership, North Korea was largely closed off to outside influences, fearful of threats from its neighbors and subject to decades of political socialization. At the same time, it also sought international aid after extensive famines that contributed to the deaths of tens of thousands of people.
Both North Korea and South Korea have shown signs of concession in recent years -- Pyongyang has expressed willingness to engage with countries involved in multilateral talks aimed at North Korea's denuclearization, while Seoul recently sent humanitarian aid through U.N. agencies to help the malnourished population in the North.
But relations between the two rival nations soured yet again when North Korea launched an attack on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong, killing two South Korean marines and two civilians.
North Korean news reports earlier this fall indicated that Kim Jong Il had been traveling around the country and visiting China, a big change from 2009 when he was thought to be ill with cancer.
Two senior U.S. military officials said then that they believed the pace of North Korea's planned regime change from Kim to his 20-something son appeared to have slowed.
The son, also known as Kim, started his career as a four-star general and in recent years was given more official duties by his father.
"He's clearly the designated successor," Mike Chinoy, a senior fellow at the U.S.-China Institute who once worked for CNN, said of Kim Jong Un. "This has been in place for a while."
Chinoy said he expected that, in the short-term, North Koreans would "rally around the flag (and) hunker down." But given the nation's deep-rooted economic and other problems, maintaining that unity and control without a overarching figure like Kim Jong Il in place may be more difficult.
"The deeper questions come over the long-term," Chinoy said.

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