Egypt Bedouins in angry protest

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Crowds of angry Bedouins have rampaged through the streets of an Egyptian town in protest at what they say is the failure of police to protect them.

Thousands were said to have taken part in the protest on Sunday in the northern Sinai town of el-Arish.

The Bedouins accused the police of failing to act after they were attacked by a rival tribe on Saturday.

Northern Sinai has become increasingly tense in recent years as ties between inhabitants and police deteriorate.

Sinai bombings

Crowds of Bedouins destroyed the offices of the ruling party, burning down furniture and pulling down pictures of President Hosni Mubarak.

Police used tear gas to break up stone-throwing protesters and a number of arrests were reported.

A number of Bedouins needed medical treatment.

Witnesses said the dispute began after a fight between two men from the el-Fawakhria and el-Tarrabeen tribes.

Hundreds of el-Tarrabeen members then came into town on Saturday in trucks, opening fire on an el-Fawakhria neighbourhood and wounding five people.

El-Fawakhria tribesmen took to the streets in protest on Saturday and repeated the demonstrations on Sunday.

The BBC's Heba Saleh in Cairo says the latest violence can only strain further what is already a very difficult relationship between the Bedouins and police.

Thousands of Bedouins were rounded up and many were tortured in the wake of bomb attacks by Islamic militants against tourist resorts in Sinai over the past two years, our correspondent says.