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More Deadly Violence Erupts In Egypt As Morsi Supporters Take To Streets

August 16, 2013
by RFE/RL

At least 70 people have been reported killed in Egypt as tens of thousands of supporters of ousted Islamist President Muhammad Morsi took to the streets in Cairo and other cities.

Despite the deaths, Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood vowed a week of continuing daily nationwide protests by supporters of deposed president Muhammad Morsi.

At least 50 people were reported killed in Cairo alone on Friday, and 20 others elsewhere in the country on August 16.

The Muslim Brotherhood had called for a 'Friday of Anger' to protest the killing of hundreds of Islamist supporters in a police crackdown on August 14.

Egypt's interim authorities have raised the death toll from those clashes to more than 620. The Muslim Brotherhood says over 2,000 people were killed.

Egypt's interim authorities have imposed a nationwide state of emergency and the Interior Ministry has warned police would use live ammunition if government buildings come under attack.

Police backed by armored military vehicles have been deployed at main intersections in Cairo.

Meanwhile, state television has aired video footage of a man carrying an automatic rifle among protesters heading toward Ramses Square.

Morsi supporters are demanding the reinstatement of the Islamist president who was ousted and detained by the military on July 3.

They accuse the army of destroying democracy by removing Morsi, Egypt's first freely elected president.

'Here [army chief Abdel Fattah] Sisi said he is going to apply democracy in Egypt and he canceled all democracy,' Morsi supporter Muhammad Ramadan told the Reuters news agency at a protest in Cairo on August 16. 'We voted [many times] and the Islamic people [won every time] and he canceled all that. Why did he cancel it? Where is democracy? Where is our voice? And after that, he killed all those who were against him and they didn't have any guns, any weapons to kill him, and they killed all of them.'

The military deposed Morsi after mass protests demanding he step down.

Meanwhile, international criticism over the violence in Egypt continues to grow.

The United Nations' Security Council has urged 'restraint' and called for 'national reconciliation.'

U.S. President Barack Obama has canceled planned joint military exercises next month with Egypt.

European Union foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton said on August 16 that responsibility for the tragedy "weighs heavily" on Egypt's interim government. She urged EU member states to agree 'appropriate measures' in response.

After speaking with French President Francois Hollande by phone on August 16, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Germany would review its ties with Egypt and the European Union should do the same.

Turkish's Islamist-rooted government has harshly denounced the crackdown on Morsi's supporters. Turkey and Egypt have said they are recalling their ambassadors for consultations in the wake of the violence.

However, some regional states supported the Egyptian government's crackdown.

Saudi King Abdullah pledged his country's support for Egypt's fight against 'terrorism,' saying it was the military-backed government's 'legitimate right.'

Jordan's King Abdullah called on Arabs to stand together against attempts to destabilize Egypt.

Egypt's interim presidency has rejected international criticism, saying it is not based on 'facts' and could encourage activities by 'violent armed groups.'

With reporting by Reuters, Al-Jazeera, the BBC, and AFP

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/egypt-protests- deadly-violence/25077723.html

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More Deadly Violence Erupts In Egypt As Morsi Supporters Take To Streets