The April 6 Youth Movement will protest on Monday outside the New Cairo courthouse where the Fifth District prosecution will decide whether to renew the detention of fellow members.
Three of the group's members and one other protester have been detained following a demonstration against police violence outside the residence of Egypt's interior minister in late March. They were arrested for chanting against the interior ministry and describing it as a "prostitute."
In a Sunday statement, the group strongly condemned the prosecutor-general's decision on 9 April to place the detainees in solitary confinement. They also decried the alleged rough treatment members receive in detention, which they are protesting by entering a hunger strike.
On 6 April, the youth group marked its 5th anniversary by mass nationwide anti-government rallies, including a protest at the prosecutor-general's office at Egypt's High Court in downtown Cairo. Violence broke out at the protest and elsewhere, where police fired tear gas and birdshot to disperse the crowds.
April 6 Youth Movement was founded in 2008 and is believed to be one of the major catalysts behind the 2008 general strike in the industrial city of Mahalla, which is often cited as a 'rehearsal' for the 2011 revolution. The group, indeed, played a significant role in the lead-up to the 25 January 2011 revolution.
