Egyptian minister urges to keep police out of politics

CAIRO - Egypt's Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim on Sunday called on all political forces to get the police out of politics.

During a press conference held Sunday, Ibrahim demanded keeping the interior ministry out of the ongoing political conflict, stressing that the police is independent and does not belong to any political faction.

"Leave us work for the sake of the security," the Egyptian interior minister added.

Ibrahim's remarks came after bloody confrontations between police forces and anti-government protesters and rioters that killed two and injured 19 others on Saturday near the iconic Tahrir Square in Egypt's capital Cairo.

Also on Sunday, the interior minister was summoned for interrogations over the riots that claimed lives of at least 40 people and injured several hundreds late January after the first court ruling on "Port Said massacre" case that sentenced 21 defendants to death.

On Saturday, the court confirmed the 21 death penalties, acquitted 28 defendants and sentenced 10 defendants to 15 years in jail, six people to 10 years of imprisonment, two to five years and one defendant to one year.