Unemployed man sets himself on fire in Cairo
Arafa Kamel Khalifa, 41, in critical condition after traveling to capital to protest losing his job, attempting self-immolation at presidential palace
Egyptian anti-Muslim Brotherhood protesters shout slogans during a rally to denounce the country's Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo, August 2012. (photo credit: AP/Amr Nabil)
CAIRO (AP) — Security officials say an Egyptian man doused himself with gasoline on Saturday and set himself on fire outside the presidential palace in Cairo.
The officials say Arafa Kamel Khalifa is in critical condition after being rushed to a hospital.
The 41-year-old Khalifa traveled 390 kilometers to Cairo from his home in the southern city of Assiut to protest losing his job four years ago. He was earning 100 dollars a month until the electricity company fired him. He has been unemployed since.
A similar act of self-immolation in Tunisia last year helped trigger the Arab Spring revolts.
The security officials spoke on condition on of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.
read more: