The head of Egypt's lawyers syndicate Sameh Ashour on Thursday said that his union would not call off a strike to protest police assault on one of its members, unless the interior ministry officially apologised for the attack.
Earlier this week, photos of lawyer Emad Fahmy with blood dripping down his forehead circulated online, after a high ranking police officer hit him in the head with his shoe during an argument at a police station in Damietta, in the northern Delta, on Tuesday.
The assault has sparked outrage among Egyptian lawyers, causing their syndicate to call for its members to hold a nationwide strike on Saturday in protest at what it has described as the police's "arrogance and bullying policies".
Late on Wednesday, the Damietta attorney general ordered that the senior police officer be detained for questioning prior to his trial, set to begin on Sunday, a judicial source told Ahram Online.
The lawyer was also arrested, but later released on bail of LE 200 (approximately $26), according to the same source.
