Security forces stormed Beni Suef University for the first time on Sunday, to disperse a protest by pro-Muslim Brotherhood students, leaving two people severely injured
Universities have become the main protest site since the ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in July 2013.
University president Amin Lotfy requested the intervention.
Beni Suef security chief Sami Tawfeek said he’d been informed by Lotfy that protesters were firing weapons inside the university, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported.
One student and a policeman were severely injured, while others suffered minor injuries.
Police arrested seven students for allegedly inciting violence.
The students were protesting the detention of their colleagues and a nationwide crackdown on anti-government protests.
Al-Azhar and Cairo universities have witnessed some of the most violent student-led protests.
The violence led the authorities to contract a private security firm to guard a number of public universities – including Beni Suef.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi issued a law on 27 October giving military courts the power to try those who attack "vital" government and public facilities, including public universities. The law – to last for two years – also allows soldiers to assist the police in guarding these sites.
