Egyptians applaud hacked billboard displaying anti-Sisi slogans
Egyptian social media was abuzz on Monday after videos of a hacked billboard in greater Cairo criticising President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi went viral.
In one widely shared clip, the billboard positioned on the bustling King Faisal Street in Giza displayed various images of Sisi, including memes, accompanied by text criticising the president.
According to the 30-second video seen by MEE, there were at least four images criticising Sisi on the billboard, including one of him standing in front of the American and Israeli flags.
One image showed a blood-spattered Sisi in military uniform with the Quranic verse: "Does he think no one has power over him?"
Another image read: "What, don't you guys know I'm a thief?"
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The video then panned out to the busy thoroughfare, where passersby could be seen taking photos and videos of the rare public display of criticism.
Looks like the public display screens on Faisal Street were hacked and anti-Al Sisi messages displayed on them.
— The Big Pharaoh (@TheBigPharaoh) July 14, 2024
pic.twitter.com/4ovs18O3ZZ
Sisi, an ex-army chief, came to power in 2013 after staging a coup against Egypt’s first democratically elected president, Mohamed Morsi, following large anti-government protests.
In the months following the coup, Sisi oversaw what rights groups described as possible crimes against humanity, as thousands of pro-Morsi protesters were either gunned down or detained in the country’s worst episode of police brutality in modern history.
Since becoming president in 2014, Sisi has led a ruthless crackdown against dissent, with an estimated 65,000 political prisoners arrested - including politicians, protesters, journalists, and civil society activists.
Following the weekend's billboard stunt, several social media users highlighted the irony of Sisi's recent call for people to pursue alternative careers, such as software programming instead of medicine, law or the humanities.
وبكده يبقى الشارع الوحيد اللي قرر يسمع كلام السيسي ويتعلم برمجة، هو #شارع_فيصل pic.twitter.com/Gy361uagpJ
— abdelrahman matar (@bdalrhmn43704) July 14, 2024
Translation: “And with that, the only street that decided to listen to Sisi and learn programming was #FaisalStreet”
"Weren't you the one who said learn programming?" one user questioned, referring to a statement Sisi made in late April, encouraging parents to have their children explore alternative careers to traditional professions.
In that statement, Sisi said that a career in programming could earn "up to $100,000 monthly from the comfort of their homes".
On average, a computer programmer in the UK earns an average of around £25,753 ($32,000) per year, according to the hiring platform Indeed.com.
"A wise man once said ‘learn programming’, and the people of Faisal [street] were the first to do so," another mocked.
'Random arrests'
Several social media users reported that random arrests were made in the local area following the hacking as authorities sought to determine who was behind it.
The Egyptian Network for Human Rights (ENHR) also reported a mass deployment of Egyptian security forces in Giza, with numerous citizens being stopped and interrogated.
Security alert after images attacking Sisi were displayed on an advertising screen on a street in Cairo. The entire area had its electricity cut off, a siege was imposed, and random arrests were made of the local residents. https://t.co/JZXbbjOCC8 pic.twitter.com/eiXFMv6elk
— Muhammad (@Al_Aqsa_1948) July 15, 2024
"The entire area had its electricity cut off, a siege was imposed and random arrests were made of the local residents," another user posted, sharing images of empty streets.
MEE could not independently verify the images.
The heavy-handed response comes amid growing demands from anonymous social media users for Sisi to step down amid increasing anger over a cost-of-living crisis and the country's worsening economic situation.
Sisi entered office promising economic prosperity within two years. But in the last 10 years, the value of the Egyptian pound has fallen by more than 600 percent.
As the economy faltered, Sisi shifted the blame onto others and famously quipped that hunger was a price worth paying for the country's progress.
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