Egyptian artists and intellectuals continue protest against minister of Culture

 
An earlier demonstration: On Sunday 2 June a group of artists trapped the minister inside his ministry. 

A group of artists and intellectuals invaded Egypt's Ministry of Culture in the Zamalek district in Cairo on Wednesday, declaring a sit-in inside the building until Minister Alaa Abdel-Aziz is replaced. The protesters included novelists Bahaa Taher and Son'allah Ibrahim, film director Khaled Yousef, and figures from the cinema industry, Galal El-Sharkawy, Fardos Abdel-Hamid, and Sameh El-Seriety.

Alaa Abdel-Aziz

It was not the first protest against Abdel Aziz. On 2 June, protesting artists surrounded the front and back exits of the ministry, keeping Abdel Aziz trapped inside until 7:30pm. The crisis in Egypt's cultural scene started on 28 May when the culture minister fired the heads of Cairo Opera House and Fine Arts Sector. Artists from Cairo  Opera House and Fine Arts Sector held protests outside the Opera House, which led to an on-stage protest at a performance of Aida and a three-day halt of performances. On 1 June, the Cairo Symphony Orchestra cancelled a concert with pianist Ramzi Yassa. The artists accuse the minister, whose ties to the Muslim Brotherhood are well known, of executing a Muslim Brotherhood agenda to Islamise Egyptian culture.