15 killed in Egypt clashes: health ministry

October 6, 2013 | By hromedia | Reply More

Oct 06, – Cairo: At least 28 people were killed Sunday in clashes in Egypt between security forces and supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohammad Mursi, a health ministry official told private channel ONTV.

Supporters of Mursi and his Muslim Brotherhood had marched in several cities to denounce the military’s overthrow of the Islamist leader, as thousands feted the army on the anniversary of the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.

In central Cairo, policemen fired shots and tear gas to disperse stone-throwing protesters. AFP correspondents saw them arrest and beat several suspected demonstrators.

Almost three months after Mursi’s overthrow, followed by a harsh crackdown on his Muslim Brotherhood movement, the Islamists had planned to galvanise their protest movement in a symbolic attempt to reach Tahrir Square.

Hundreds of thousands of people had filled the square in February 2011 to force president Hosni Mubarak to resign, and again in July 2013 to urge the army to depose his successor Mursi.

But on Sunday, security forces guarded entrances to the square, frisking people arriving for the pro-army celebrations.

Several thousand people, some carrying pictures of army chief Abdul Fattah Al Sisi, waved Egyptian flags as warplanes flew overhead in formation and patriotic songs blared from loudspeakers.

Elsewhere in Cairo, the air was thick with tear gas and the crackle of gunfire as police confronted several marches on their way to Tahrir.

In Delga, an Islamist bastion south of Cairo, one person was killed when Islamists clashed with civilian opponents and police, a health ministry official and witnesses said.

Clashes also erupted in the Suez Canal city of Ismailiya, a security official said.

For weeks authorities have been drumming up national fervour in state media, amid the worst political divisions in Egypt’s recent history.

Prime Minister Hazem Beblawi urged Egyptians to unite, saying the country is on the road to recovery.

“As we go through these critical times all Egyptians should stand together, be confident and be optimistic about the future,” he said in a televised address.

Mursi’s opponents demonstrated in their millions in June and July to urge the army to remove him, accusing the Islamist of failing the revolution that brought him to the presidency and concentrating power in the hands of his allies.

Press journalist for HRO media – contributed to this report.