Mohamed Ali, the Egyptian entrepreneur who calls for the fall of President Sissi

They had never dared to openly express their opposition. On September 27, for the second consecutive Friday, groups of Egyptians took to the streets of several cities, calling for the resignation of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Unprecedented demonstrations, inspired by the call of a man, Mohamed Ali, an Egyptian entrepreneur who denounces, in his videos, the corruption of the regime.

A former ally of the regime at war with the president

Few Egyptians knew the businessman Mohamed Ali a few months ago. But in early September, this rich entrepreneur decided to go to war against President Sissi. After working for fifteen years for the Egyptian army through his construction company, he fled Egypt to Spain for reasons he said of security, after disputes with the army.

Since early September, he has posted dozens of videos, accusing the regime of wasting money in public money, figures in support, in major construction projects, including presidential palaces and villas for his entourage. Mohamed Ali himself claims to have participated in the construction of many of these projects for the army. Today he presents himself as a victim of a corrupt system that would have cheated 220 million Egyptian lira (about 14 million euros).

His virulent attacks that directly target the president, are relayed en masse on social networks. While Egypt is going through a difficult economic period with record inflation, Muhammad Ali's remarks are stirring up some of the Egyptian people. On September 20 in a new video, he calls the Egyptians to go down the street the same evening. Against all odds, a protest movement emerges.

A credible opponent?

On 14 September, a week before the first demonstration, President Sissi reacted to Mohammed Ali's accusations: "I have built presidential palaces and I will continue to do so, I am building a new country ... All this is not to me, it is to Egypt ". The former general rejected accusations of corruption claiming it was "lies and attempts at defamation".

For Koert Debeuf, director of the NGO Tahrir Institute for Middle East, Sissi's reaction was counterproductive in the eyes of the public: "By driving the nail on its policy of major works without denying the role claimed by Mohammed Ali, he has strengthened its credibility, especially since we know that since the arrival of Sissi in power, major projects have multiplied and they are systematically supervised by the army.The videos of Ali find an echo in part of the Egyptians because he masters his subject and speaks the language of the people. "

Born in a suburb of Cairo, Mohammed Ali has a course for the least surprising. His father, champion of weightlifting, reconverted in the construction business, introduces him to business. While managing his construction company, he began, in the 2010s, in an acting career playing in some series and films, before leaving Egypt.

If his positions seduce, the approach of Mohammed Ali raises many questions including social networks where some blame him for seeking only revenge or to have preferred to leave the country before attacking the regime.

Koert Debeuf considers that the entrepreneur risks big: "No one could have imagined that a man from the inside had the courage to attack President Sissi face to face.For much less than that, people disappear and are murdered in Egypt, Muhammad Ali plays it all out, he knows he will not be able to return to his country as long as Sissi is in power.

His father, Ali Abdul Khalek, remained in Egypt and spoke on a pro-government television channel to distance himself from his son and assert his loyalty to the army. Mohamed Ali says that his life is threatened in Spain and calls for the protection of the government.

High-risk events

In 2013, as millions of Egyptians demonstrate demanding the departure of Islamist President Mohamed Morsi, General Fatah al-Sisi comes to power in a military coup. Since then, any protest movement is totally forbidden in Egypt. The country also lives under a state of emergency since 2017, following two attacks claimed by the State Ismalique organization.

Despite the danger, on Thursday, September 26, on the eve of the new demonstration, Mohammed Ali called on Egyptians to protest unreservedly: "Every part of Egypt must go out for freedom. do not fear the police, do not fear the security of the state. " Demonstrations took place on Friday, notably on Warraq Island, Cairo, Qus and Qena in the south of the country, but their extent seems to have been limited.

For the France 24 correspondent in Cairo, Ruth Michaelson, there is no doubt that his first appeal of Mohammed Ali was surprised: "He asked the Egyptians to take to the streets the same day, the same day. Friday night after the football match between the two big teams in Cairo, the authorities were unprepared ".

At the same time, President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi flew to the UN General Assembly in New York.

In the days following the first protest, some 2,000 people, including journalists, intellectuals and opponents, were arrested, according to Human Rights Watch and several local NGOs, and security has been significantly increased in several cities across the country.