Egyptian street performer arrested over satirical video

CAIRO – Police have arrested a teenage Egyptian street performer they accuse of inciting anti-government protests and releasing an online video “insulting state institutions,” his lawyer said on Sunday.

Mahmoud Othman told The Associated Press that Ezzedeen Khaled, 19, was arrested Saturday from his Cairo home.

Khaled is member of a satirical group called Awlad al-Shawarea, or “Street Children,” which recently released a video clip critical of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi that has circulated on social media.

The short clip was part of a series of two-minute videos shot in the street and released on the group’s Facebook page mocking the president and his supporters. One video was titled “el-Sissi, my president, made things worse.” Another one repeated the phrase “leave,” first used during the 2011 uprising against longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. The videos also mocked supporters of el-Sissi, repeating catch phrases used by government supporters in defence of el-Sissi’s policies.

Street Children is part of an art movement that has flourished following the 2011 uprising. The movement, in recent years, has tackled political and social issues through street performances, graffiti and live music.

Khaled’s detention came amid a wave of arrests of activists, journalists and rights lawyers following anti-government protests last month over el-Sissi’s decision to transfer two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia.