Cairo University's Student Union Council will submit a request for the release of arrested students on Monday to the prosecutor-general, signed by University President Gaber Nassar.

The union said in a brief statement on its official Facebook page late on Sunday that a delegation of lawyers from the university will defend the students.

About a hundred students were arrested nationwide, including 18 from Cairo University, in the crackdown on Islamists that followed president Mohamed Morsi’s ouster on 3 July by the armed forces amid mass protests against his rule.

Student Unions have repeatedly called for the students’ release, especially after the new school term started last week.

Meanwhile, tensions have escalated on university campuses as a new school year started, with scuffles breaking out between Brotherhood loyalists and their rivals.