U.S. student killed in Egypt protest was drawn to region

The family of an American college student killed in Egypt during violent protests says their son cared passionately about the Middle East and was in the country to teach English to children and to improve his own Arabic.

The State Department said Andrew Pochter, 21, of Chevy Chase, Md., was killed Friday in Alexandria during clashes between government supporters and opponents. His family said in a statement yesterday he was stabbed by a protester while observing the demonstrations.

"He went to Egypt because he cared profoundly about the Middle East. He had studied in the region, loved the culture, and planned to live and work there in the pursuit of peace and understanding," the statement said.

Pochter, a religious-studies major at Kenyon College in Ohio, was among at least three people killed Friday in Alexandria.

Eight more people were killed in violent clashes yesterday, just hours before hundreds of thousands of protesters planned to stage a nationwide rally to force President Mohamed Morsi to step down.

Today's demonstration might be the biggest challenge to the Islamist leader since taking office a year ago and comes after military leaders said last week they won't allow Egypt to slide into chaos. The army deployed in Cairo and major cities last week amid battles between Morsi's backers and opponents. More than 600 people have been injured since Wednesday, according to the Health Ministry.

The protests, which unite youth groups and opposition parties with supporters of the army and the regime ousted in 2011, cap weeks of surging anger amid an economic crisis that battered financial markets and left Egyptians grappling with fuel shortages. Morsi's opponents, who have spurned his call for dialogue, accuse Islamists of seeking to consolidate their power while failing to address the daily grievances of citizens.

"This regime is trying to create a dictatorship in Egypt, and has ignored calls for change and it doesn't suggest any plan for the economic crisis," said Mahmoud Salem, a blogger who was among the leading political activists in the uprising that ousted Hosni Mubarak. "We have a small window of opportunity, and we have no option but to seize it."

President Barack Obama said in South Africa he is monitoring the protests "with concern" and his "most immediate" priority is making sure U.S. embassies and consulates are protected.