Egypt activist's killing sparks outrage in Cairo

CAIRO -- Egyptian women gathered in the heart of downtown Cairo Thursday to protest the killing of one of their own.

Dramatic pictures show the moment Egyptian protester Shaimaa El-Sabbagh was shot dead last weekend. She and a small group of anti-government activists had gathered to mark the anniversary of Egypt's revolution; the overthrow of long-time strongman Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

But police forcefully broke up the demonstration, and pictures and video of El-Sabbagh's death went viral, provoking an uproar. Activists claim the photographic evidence clearly shows El-Sabbagh was shot at close range by a police shotgun round. She died after birdshot penetrated her heart and lungs.

"The images that came out after Shaimaa's death were so moving and so outrageous that they created a certain moment, online and amongst activists, and even beyond activists," protester Yasmin El-Rifae told CBS News on Thursday.

That's what brought her and hundreds of others back out to the streets Thursday.

"You hit a certain limit, maybe, and maybe that limit is having someone shot in broad daylight quite near to where you live or where you hang out," said El-Rifae.

The protesters gathered Thursday in the exact spot where El-Sabbagh was shot dead, in memorial of her. They held flowers and images of their former compatriot, and chanted against the police.

The Egyptian authorities have promised a speedy investigation into El-Sabbagh's death.

But when CBS News asked police general Gamal Mukhtar how he could explain the images of her violent killing, he suggested they had been fabricated.

"The pictures aren't evidence of anything at all," he said.

It's that kind of talk that makes the women who took to the streets on Thursday doubt they'll see any real justice for their fallen colleague.