Cairo ( CNN ) -- Thousands gathered in the Egyptian capital on Friday in a mass demonstration against the country 's armed forces and its heavy-handed treatment of protesters , which has since drawn international condemnation . Protesters could be seen erecting tents in Cairo 's Tahrir Square , a location widely considered the epicenter of an uprising that brought down Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak earlier this year . The move marks the latest in a series of protests around the capital , where at least 16 people were killed in recent days amid clashes with Egyptian authorities . The unrest appears to largely stem from a stretch of assaults by police and defiant protests by demonstrators demanding that Egypt 's ruling military cede power to a civilian government . Protesters on Friday could be heard singing the country 's national anthem and chanting slogans , such as `` The honor of Egyptian women is a red line . '' They also put up a large projector screen in the city 's square , which showed videos of violence against protesters and included testimonials by the injured and family members of those recently killed . Days of clashes were further stoked last weekend by the beating of a woman at the hands of military officers , prompting Tuesday 's so-called `` Million Women '' march , billed as an attempt to highlight regime violence against female demonstrators . Egypt 's ruling military council later expressed `` great regret '' to the women over recent attacks and vowed to hold accountable those responsible . Security forces , meanwhile , on Friday appeared largely absent from the demonstration , according to CNN personnel at the scene . But political groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood and its Freedom and Justice Party , as well as the Salfi Islamic Movement , said they were boycotting the events . The country 's Islamic Wasat Party , however , has decided to participate . Elsewhere in Cairo , hundreds of protesters converged on the city 's Abasya Square , chanting slogans such as `` No to Destruction . '' Large crowds also gathered in similar demonstrations in the Egyptian cities of Alexandria and Suez , according to state television . On Wednesday , Egypt 's military announced on Facebook that they had acquired information of a `` plan to vandalize government buildings and topple Egypt on January 25 , 2012 . '' The date would mark the one-year anniversary of the start of Egypt 's uprising that largely began in Tahrir square on January 25 , 2011 . Demonstrators have also called for the country 's presidential elections , scheduled to take place in June , to be moved ahead to instead take place on the anniversary . A Ministry of Health spokesman , meanwhile , said that some 30 ambulances have been stationed near Tahrir Square and a field hospital has been set-up in anticipation of possible clashes .
Thousands gathered in Cairo in a mass demonstration against the country 's armed forces . They demand that Egypt 's ruling military cede power to a civilian government . They are calling for presidential elections to be moved ahead to January .