Egypt Arrests Organisers of Joke ‘Helwan Real Batman Battle’ Event
The police in Egypt have arrested four indivduals who organised a joke Facebook event have been arrested in Egypt on charges of “planning a riot” and “using reactions… to make money.”
“Helwan Real Batman Battle” was set up after two users argued in jest over whether they were the caped crusader.
A third member then proposed that they dress up in Batman costumes and “fight a battle” in Cairo’s Helwan district on the night of 13 August to “solve this issue” once and for all.
“Whoever is still alive is the real Batman,” the event’s description said.
The post prompted a wave of memes, jokes and quotes, and attracted favourable reactions from Egyptian celebrities.
However, a few days later, TV channels loyal to President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi expressed concern about the event, suggesting that it could be used to promote violence against law enforcement agencies.
Well-known TV presenter Lamis al-Hadidi linked the date chosen for the event to the ninth anniversary of the bloody crackdown that followed the military’s overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi. More than 900 people were killed when security forces broke up sit-ins by tens of thousands of Morsi supporters in two squares in Cairo on 14 August 2013, according to Human Rights Watch.
