The doctors’ planned protest in front of the parliament was aborted by police intervention:
Security prevented doctors from holding a protest outside the People’s Assembly on Tuesday.
The Doctors’ Syndicate had called for a protest just after midday, to coincide with Finance Minister Youssef Boutros Ghali’s presentation of the annual state budget to parliament.
Groups of plain-clothed men, some of whom were carrying truncheons or walkie-talkies, were spread out along the length of Cairo’s central Qasr El-Aini Street. Riot police had been stationed outside both parliament and the Doctors’ Syndicate.
A large number of high-ranking police officers and state security investigations officers — but no doctors — were congregated opposite parliament at 12:30 pm when the protest was scheduled to begin.
Daily News Egypt was told by state security investigations officer Hisham El-Iraqi that the protest had been banned, and that doctors had been instructed to go to the Doctors’ Syndicate. The press was ordered to leave the area in front of the parliament.
An identical scenario occurred at the syndicate, where journalists were told that they were not allowed to enter the syndicate building and could not stand in its vicinity. They were also informed that the protest had been banned.
When a journalist enquired about the reason for the ban, an officer said: “There is no reason.”