Images of shot Egypt protester revive criticism of police

Egyptians march during the funeral procession of Shaimaa el-Sabagh, a 32-year-old mother of one from the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, who was shot Saturday in downtown Cairo while taking part in a gathering commemorating the nearly 900 protesters killed in the revolution, in Alexandria, Egypt, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015. Protests and stepped-up security came as activists mourned the death el-Sabagh. Activists blame police for her death. The government says it is investigating. Arabic on the banner with el-Sabagh's portrait reads, "martyr Shaimaa el-Sabagh," and the banner foreground left, reads, "the blood of martyrs in on our necks." (AP Photo/Heba Khamis) Egyptians march during the funeral procession of Shaimaa el-Sabagh, a 32-year-old mother of one from the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, who was shot Saturday in downtown Cairo while taking part in a gathering commemorating the nearly 900 protesters killed in the revolution, in Alexandria, Egypt, Sunday, Jan. 25, 2015. Protests and stepped-up security came as activists mourned the death el-Sabagh. Activists blame police for her death. The government says it is investigating. Arabic on the banner with el-Sabagh's portrait reads, "martyr Shaimaa el-Sabagh," and the banner foreground left, reads, "the blood of martyrs in on our necks." (AP Photo/Heba Khamis)

By Associated Press January 25, 2015 4 min read

CAIRO — Images of a slain protester, blood running down her face and hair as her body was lifted from the ground, have touched off powerful criticism of Egypt’s government on the anniversary of a revolution initially sparked by police brutality.

The photos and videos show a heavily armed police unit, with some members masked, shooting at a small, peaceful protest Saturday near Cairo’s Tahrir Square in which 32-year-old Shaimaa el-Sabbagh took part.

A labor rights activist with a history of involvement in protests that predated the country’s 2011 revolution, el-Sabbagh was also a poet and mother of a 5-year-old boy.

She had traveled to Cairo from her home in Alexandria to attend the demonstration to demand police and officials be held accountable for protesters killed since the uprising four years ago that forced autocrat Hosni Mubarak from power.

She was killed by what authorities said was a blast of birdshot that pierced her heart and lungs from close range.