Egypt has begun a two-day referendum on a new constitution. The vote is seen as a possible precursor to a presidential bid by Egypt’s top military general. It takes place amid an ongoing crackdown on dissent including the arrests of those who oppose the charter. Hundreds of thousands of police and soldiers were deployed across Egypt. Just before polling began, an explosion rocked a Cairo neighborhood. The Muslim Brotherhood of ousted President Mohamed Morsi has called for a boycott. An activist with the April 6 Democratic Front said his group is also rejecting the vote.

Mohamed Fawaz: “We can never participate and give legitimacy to a regime which fools the people and tries to act like it is a civil democratic regime, while it is neither democratic nor civil. We will not participate in a constitution which forms a military state after we revolted against its principles and oppressive nature filled with aggression, violence and rage against all that oppose it.”