Egypt was plunged further towards civil war yesterday after dozens of supporters of deposed president Mohamed Morsi were shot dead by the army.More than 50 people were killed and 435 injured in an attack condemned by Turkey as a ‘massacre’.
The clash has led to calls from Islamists for an all-out rebellion against the military – which ousted the democratically-elected leader in a coup last week.
The killings took place outside the Republican Guard building in Cairo, where some believe Mr Morsi is being held.
Running red: A river of blood flows down Salem
Saleh street in Cairo, Egypt where supporters of ousted Egyptian
President Mohammed Morsi clashed with the Egyptian military, kiling at
least 52 people and injuring hundreds more
Army snipers were caught on camera shooting at a large crowd of Egyptian men this morning
The crowd of Morsi supporters had assembled in the square in the early hours of the morning. At least 51 people were killed
Stubborn: Two female supporters of deposed
president Mohamed Morsi sit in front of barbed wire fencing that blocks
the access to the headquarters of the Republican Guard in Cairo where
the bloodbath took place
Grief: An Egyptian man cries outside a morgue
after carrying the corpse of his brother killed near the Republican
Guard building in Cairo
Action: A supporter of Egypt's ousted President
Mohammed Morsi chants slogans while his comrades take a rest in a park
near Cairo University
Morsi supporters attend the noon prayer as they protest in Nasser City, suburb of Cairo on Monday
Bodies lie on the floor at a makeshift morgue in
a hospital in Cairo after clashes between the military and supporters
of President Morsi left at least 42 dead
Victims: A member of the Muslim Brotherhood sits
next to the bodies of supporters of ousted president Morsi who were
killed during clashes early on Monday morning
The military claimed it opened fire because a ‘terrorist group’ attacked in an attempt to storm the building.
But Mr Morsi’s supporters said the shootings were unprovoked and Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu described them as a ‘massacre’.
Just hours later, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood urged Egyptians to rise up against the military, which it claimed was pushing Egypt into becoming ‘a new Syria’.
But Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the country’s top Muslim cleric, urged Egyptians to ‘shoulder their responsibility to stop the bloodshed’ instead of ‘dragging the country into civil war’.
Security has now been tightened at key points in the capital. With more pro-Morsi demonstrations planned, tanks, armoured cars and soldiers were seen patrolling the city streets last night.
But Mr Morsi’s supporters said the shootings were unprovoked and Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu described them as a ‘massacre’.
Just hours later, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood urged Egyptians to rise up against the military, which it claimed was pushing Egypt into becoming ‘a new Syria’.
One man is caught on camera after having been shot by army snipers in Cairo
Other Morsi supporters attempt to carry him to safety as the shots are still being fired
He is lay down and given water in the back of a pick-up truck before it drives off
The crowd struggles to take pictures and videos of the man as he lies in the white truck
In an emotional news briefing, Muslim
Brotherhood members branded military chief General Abdul Fattah al-Sisi
an ‘assassin and a butcher’.But Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the country’s top Muslim cleric, urged Egyptians to ‘shoulder their responsibility to stop the bloodshed’ instead of ‘dragging the country into civil war’.
Security has now been tightened at key points in the capital. With more pro-Morsi demonstrations planned, tanks, armoured cars and soldiers were seen patrolling the city streets last night.
Taken out: At least 40 people have reportedly been killed, but initial accounts of how they died were unclear
A wounded supporter of Egypt's ousted President Morsi receives treatment at a hospital in Cairo
Agony: A wounded supporter of President Morsi waits to receive treatment
Satellite broadcaster Al-Jazeera
showed footage from a nearby field hospital of at least six dead bodies
laid out on the ground, some with severe wounds.
A medic from the area, Hesham Agami, said ambulances were unable to transport more than 200 wounded to hospitals because the military had blocked off the roads.
Al-Shaimaa Younes, who was at the sit-in, said military troops and police forces opened fire on the protesters during early morning prayers.
'They opened fire with live ammunition and lobbed tear gas,' she said by telephone. 'There was panic and people started running. I saw people fall.'
Women and children had been among the protesters, she said.
One police officer on the scene was killed, he said.
Another military spokesman said five from the Brotherhood side were killed.
A medic from the area, Hesham Agami, said ambulances were unable to transport more than 200 wounded to hospitals because the military had blocked off the roads.
Al-Shaimaa Younes, who was at the sit-in, said military troops and police forces opened fire on the protesters during early morning prayers.
'They opened fire with live ammunition and lobbed tear gas,' she said by telephone. 'There was panic and people started running. I saw people fall.'
Women and children had been among the protesters, she said.
Bloodshed: A Muslim Brotherhood member receives medical attention after being injured during the violence
In the line of fire: An injured man is wheeled
into a makeshift hospital where victims are being brought following
clashes between Egyptian military and Muslim Brotherhood supporters
Injured: Supporters of deposed Egyptian
president Mohamed Morsi help a wounded protester outside the Republican
Guard headquarters in Cairo
Turmoil: A man grieves at a makeshift hospital
where victims are being brought following clashes between Egyptian
police and Muslim Brotherhood supporters
Fighting for their cause: Wounded supporters of president Morsi wait for treatment at a field hospital in Cairo
Collateral damage: An ambulance driver lies on a hospital bed after being shot while trying to help the injured
Help at hand: A injured man sits in a makeshift
hospital where victims are being brought following clashes between
Egyptian police and Muslim Brotherhood supporters
A wounded Morsi supporter is treated at a
private hospital in Cairo: A medic claimed ambulances were unable to
transport more than 200 wounded to hospitals because the military had
blocked off the roads
Military spokesman Colonel Ahmed
Mohammed Ali said initial information indicates that gunmen affiliated
with the Brotherhood tried to storm the Republican Guard building
shortly after dawn, firing live ammunition and throwing firebombs from a
nearby mosque and rooftops. One police officer on the scene was killed, he said.
Another military spokesman said five from the Brotherhood side were killed.
Taking cover: Muslim Brotherhood members gather
behind barricades during clashes with the military over the ouster of
President Mohamed Morsi which has left dozens dead and a further 300
injured in Cairo
Outraged: Morsi's supporters refuse to recognise the interim leader and insist the ex-president be reinstated
Out in force: Egyptian Republican guards take up
positions in front of a barricade during clashes with members of the
Muslim Brotherhood near rabaa aldwya in Cairo
Brink of civil war: Egyptian army soldiers take
their positions near armored vehicles at the entrance of Tahrir square
in Cairo, where dozens of people were killed in clashes outside a
military building in the capital
At the ready: Amid conflicting reports, the
military said initial information indicates that gunmen affiliated with
the Brotherhood tried to storm the Republican Guard building shortly
after dawn
Carnage: An Egyptian health ministry official said initial reports indicated at least 300 were wounded
Transition: Egypt's military chief has replaced Morsi with an interim leader until presidential elections are held
Unrest: An Egyptian woman walks past army forces on a bridge leading to Tahrir square in Cairo
On alert: A tank of the Egyptian Army drives on a
bridge leading to Tahrir square after clashes between the military and
protesters outside the Republican Guard building
Morsi supporters have been holding rallies and a sit-in outside the Republican Guard building since the military deposed Morsi during massive protests against him.
The military chief replaced Morsi with an interim leader, until presidential elections are held.
But Morsi's supporters refuse to recognise the interim leader and insist Morsi be reinstated.
Smoke alarm: Egyptian supporters of the Muslim
Brotherhood rallying in support of deposed president Mohamed Morsi clash
with police outside the Republican Guard HQ in Cairo
Evasive action: People run for cover as security
forces fire tear gas after shooting to disperse Islamist supporters of
ousted president Mohamed Morsi outside the Republican Guard HQ in Cairo
Clashes: Al-Shaimaa Younes, who was at the
sit-in, said military troops and police forces opened fire on the
protesters during early morning prayers
Besides the Republican Guard sit-in, they are also holding thousands-strong daily rallies at a nearby mosque. Morsi's opponents are also holding rival rallies. They say the former president lost his legitimacy by mismanaging the country and not ruling democratically, leading to a mass revolt that called on the army to push him from office.
Secular and liberal factions trying to install one of their own as Egypt's new prime minister met strong resistance from the sole Islamist faction that backed the military's ousting of President Mohammed Morsi.
As talks went on, giant rallies by the movements that pushed out Mr Morsi took on a sharply nationalist tone, pervaded with posters of the military's chief and denunciations of the United States and President Barack Obama for they see as their backing of the Islamist leader.
The show of strength in the streets was aimed at fending off a determined campaign by Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, which brought out its own supporters in large protests yesterday.
Warning that the military was turning Egypt into a 'totalitarian state', Brotherhood officials vowed to stay on the streets to reverse what they call a coup against democracy and restore Egypt's first freely-elected president to office.
Explosive: Fireworks burst over opponents of
Egypt's ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi during a rally outside
the presidential palace in Cairo, where dozens of people have been
killed in clashes
Flaring up: A spokesman from Morsi's Muslim
Brotherhood and a witness at the scene however said military forces
opened fire at dawn on the protesters outside the Republican Guard
building
Up in arms: Egyptian supporters of the Muslim
Brotherhood shout slogans as they rally in support of deposed president
Mohamed Morsi outside Cairo's Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque late on Sunday
Throughout Mr Morsi's year in office, many of his opponents accused the United States of backing his administration. Washington often underlined that it was dealing with Mr Morsi as the country's elected leader.
Before the wave of anti-Morsi protests began on June 30, U.S. ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson said she was 'deeply sceptical' protests would be fruitful.
She defended US relations with Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood as necessary because the group was part of the democratically-elected government.
Since Mr Morsi's removal last Wednesday, Washington has tread carefully, expressing concern without calling the army's move a coup or denouncing Mr Morsi's demise.
On Saturday, the White House said it rejected 'false claims propagated by some in Egypt that we are working with specific political parties or movements to dictate how Egypt's transition should proceed', saying it was committed to Egyptians' aspirations for democracy.
The widespread appearance of anti-American slogans in Tahrir had a double-edged message: painting the Brotherhood as a tool of Washington and pushing back against US concerns over the military's moves.
Tensions run high: Members of the Muslim
Brotherhood and supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi
run during a clash with anti-Morsi protesters in Alexandria
Making their views known: Anti-Morsi protesters
celebrate in Alexandria thousands of supporters and opponents of the
ousted Egyptian President gathered in the city
'The United States should support the people's will and not the interest of a person or a group seeking only their own interest.'
The appointment of a prime minister is the key next step in building a post-Morsi leadership. The prime minister is to hold far greater powers in running the country than the interim president , Adly Mansour, a senior judge who was sworn into the post earlier.
The bloc of secular, leftist and liberal factions that led the giant wave of protests against Mr Morsi last week are now the main grouping in a loose collection of movements trying to fill out leadership posts.
Warning: Middle East peace envoy and former
British prime minister Tony Blair said it would be 'devastating' for the
region if Egypt were to collapse
But also among them is a main party of the ultra-conservative Islamist movement known as Salafis - al-Nour - which turned against Mr Morsi months ago and backed his removal.
On Saturday, al-Nour blocked the appointment of the most prominent liberal figure, Mohamed ElBaradei, as prime minister, who is deeply distrusted by the Islamist movement as too secular.
Yesterday, the secular-liberal bloc offered a compromise candidate, Ziad Bahaa-Eldin, a prominent financial expert and an ally of Mr ElBaradei.
The interim president's spokesman Ahmed al-Musalamani, told Egypt's ONTV that Mr Bahaa-Eldin was the leading candidate, with Mr ElBaradei positioned to be named vice president.
But al-Nour again appeared prepared to block it.
'Our position is that the prime minister should not belong to a specific faction ... We want a technocrat,' al-Nour Party chief Younes Makhyoun said.
He pointed to Mr Bahaa-Eldin's membership in the National Salvation Front, the main umbrella group of liberal parties that was Mr Morsi's main opposition.
Al-Nour faces considerable pressure from its followers not to be seen as backing down to secular movements. Brotherhood officials claim some al-Nour members have already joined its pro-Morsi protests.
When al-Nour broke with Mr Morsi months ago, it caused a split among its ranks, with some members forming a new party that remained with the president.
Al-Nour was clearly concerned about appearing to side with the military against fellow Islamists at a time when Mr Morsi and five other prominent Brotherhood figures have been put in detention and Islamist television stations have been put off the air.
Concerned: Mr Blair gave his reaction to the growing crisis in Egypt on BBC Radio 4's Today programme
So far, the constitution has been only suspended and the talk has been of just amending disputed articles.
Yesterday, the Dawaa Salafia, a body of clerics allied to al-Nour, said the new leadership must be inclusive of Islamists and criticised the heavy hand against the Brotherhood.
'No one should rejoice for undermining the freedom of others even if they are political rivals because repression is harmful for all,' it said in a statement.
'The police and the army should not discriminate between citizens based on their political colour.
'Worse than this is to discriminate against anyone because of their Islamic disposition.'
* Tony Blair has called for a no-fly zone to be imposed over Syria.
The former prime minister criticised the Government’s lack of intervention, saying it was a ‘fight that matters to us as well’.
He also claimed the conflict in Syria over the last two years had caused more deaths than the Iraq War in proportion to the population – and called for the West to help arm the Syrian rebels.
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