CAIRO — The Egyptian government has recently announced that 71% of Warraq Island’s total area, located southwest of Cairo on the Nile River, has been reclaimed and come under the ownership of the Ministry of Housing’s Urban Communities Authority, in preparation to ultimately possessing all the large Nile islands in the country.

As part of a government development plan for Warraq Island, which occupies a privileged position on the Nile River, a large number of security forces have recently cracked down on the island’s residents to evict them and demolish their homes, claiming that they had infringed on state property.

On Aug. 15, clashes erupted between security forces and island residents. Mada Masr revealed that Egyptian authorities arrested 14 residents of Warraq Island as they resisted police forces who were firing tear gas at them and raiding houses in preparation to expropriate them.

On Aug. 19, member of parliament Samira al-Jazzar condemned what she described as the forced displacement of the residents of Warraq Island after police forces used tear gas to disperse citizens protesting against the government's decision to expropriate their homes.