Cairo: An Egyptian Islamist has attempted to set his fellow employee on fire after she angered him by programming a pro-army ringtone in her mobile phone, said police on Saturday.
The suspect, a follower of the Muslim Brotherhood to which the ousted president Mohammad Mursi belongs, frequently scolded his workmate at a pharmaceutical company in the coastal city of Alexandria for using the ringtone inspired by a popular song that praises the army, who deposed the Islamist leader in July.
The 23-year-old woman reported to the police that her colleague, a salesman, had insulted her before throwing petrol at her in a bid to torch her, the online edition of state-run newspaper Al Ahram reported.
The woman’s account was backed up by two witnesses, according to the report. Police also seized three petrol bottles, a knife and a paper cutter inside the suspected assailant’s car.
The song May God Reward the Hands has become widely popular in Egypt since the army toppled Mursi on July 3 following massive street protests against his one-year-old rule. The song has recently triggered fights between the army’s opponents and backers in several areas of Egypt, according to local media.
Hundreds of Islamists, including the Brotherhood leaders, have been detained since Mursi’s overthrow allegedly for inciting violence.
The Brotherhood has condemned the ouster of Mursi, Egypt’s first democratically elected president, as a coup and vowed non-stop protests until he is reinstated.
An Islamist alliance, led by the Brotherhood, has called for nationwide civil disobedience on Sunday in defiance of the military-backed government’s draconian crackdown. The Brotherhood’s anti-military protests have drawn dwindling numbers in recent weeks.
