Grief: Relatives mourning outside a field hospital at Rabaa Adawiya mosque
Followers: This image released by the Egyptian
army of Friday evening's pro-army rally shows the strength of support
for the security forces and against the ousted president Morsi
Demonstration: Hundreds of thousands took to the streets as supporters of the army heeded a call to rally
Support: Demonstrations like this pro-army
gathering in Tahrir Square on Friday night were met with
counter-protests by Morsi followers
The state health ministry currently says that only 65 people had died and 750 suffered injuries.
However, Al Jazeera Egypt reported that some 4,500 may have been injured in the early morning violence.
Military-backed
authorities were feeling emboldened today after millions turned out for
nationwide rallies on Friday called by the army chief.
A leading figure of Morsi's
Muslim Brotherhood, Mohammed el-Beltagy, blamed the violence on army
chief General Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's call for rallies on Friday.
Hundreds of
thousands of people came onto the streets after army
chief General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi,
who played a central role in overthrowing the president, called for
Egyptians to rally to give him a mandate to tackle 'violence and
terrorism'.
Support: A Egyptian man waves national flags as an army helicopter flies over supporters of the army in Tahrir Square
Show of strength: Supporters of the army gathered in Tahrir Square in Cairo on Friday
Lights: Hundreds of laser lights were shone into
the sky by demonstrators in Tahrir Square who rallied to show support
for the army
Reporters at the scene said firing could still be heard hours after the troubles started.
'They are not shooting to wound, they are shooting to kill,' said pro-Morsi Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad El-Haddad.
The deaths occurred hours after supporters and opponents of Morsi staged
mass rival rallies across the country.
Ragab Nayel Ali, one of the pro-Morsi protesters, said security forces fired first with tear gas and birdshot.
'Protesters
replied by hurling rocks and started building walls,' said Ali, who was
injured in an accident as he ferried wounded on his motorcycle from the
fighting to a field hospital.
Clash: Security forces fired rounds of teargas at pro-Morsi supporters at a vigil in Cairo
Barricade: Supporters of the deposed president
throw stones from behind a makeshift wall as they take cover from the
police during clashes in Cairo
Explosion: Fireworks are set off near police and pro-army protesters by supporters of Morsi
Warzone: The streets of Cairo descended into chaos as supporters of the army clashed with pro-Morsi demonstrators
Confusion: Security forces said they had fired teargas at pro-Morsi supporters but denied shooting at them
Aftermath: Supporters of President Morsi lay
flowers near a puddle of blood, while a woman cries outside a field
hospital in the Nasr area of the city
Destruction: Stones and flowers are laid next to
a trail of blood that has splattered across a tiled floor during the
clashes in the early hours of this morning
The fighting is the country's bloodiest incidence of violence since the army deposed Mohammed Morsi earlier this month.
British Foreign Secretary William
Hague said: 'I am deeply concerned by recent events in Egypt, and
condemn the use of force against protesters which has led to the loss of
lives.'
But Muslim Brotherhood supporters also staged mass counter-rallies,
demanding the reinstatement of Morsi, who was placed under investigation
on Friday for a raft of crimes, including murder.
More than 200 people have died in
violence since the overthrow of Morsi, including at least nine on
Friday, most of them Brotherhood supporters.
Mr Haddad said the latest deaths came after police started firing repeated rounds of
teargas around 3am at protesters who had
spilled out of the main area of the Rabaa sit-in.
'Through the smog of the gas, the
bullets started flying,' he said.
Security: A military helicopter patrols the
skies above Tahrir Square where hundreds of thousands of supporters of
the army gathered on Friday
Flares: Fireworks were let off above the crowds at the presidential palace in Cairo
Split: Both the army and the ousted president have thousands of supporters in Egypt
Conflict: Police stand back as teargas is fired into a crowd in Cairo in the early hours of Saturday morning
He claimed 'special police forces
in black uniforms' were firing live rounds and that snipers shot from
the roofs of a university, buildings in the area, and a bridge.
State news agency MENA quoted an unnamed security source as saying that
only teargas was used to disperse protesters. He said no firearms were
used.
Mr Haddad said the pro-Morsi supporters had used rocks to try to defend
themselves.
On the podium outside the Rabaa mosque, a speaker urged
people to retreat from the gunfire, but Mr Haddad said 'men stayed to defend themselves
because women and children are inside the sit-in'.
Accusations: The clashes came as Morsi was accused of crimes including murder
Distress: An injured supporter of Morsi kneels on the ground after clashes with riot police in the capital
Injuries: A supporter of the ousted president is rushed to a field hospital in the Nasr area of Cairo
Attack: A spokesman for the Muslim Brotherhood
claimed hundreds of people were injured when security forces shot at
them in the early hours of this morning
Treatment: At least 70 people are thought to have died, while scores of the injured were rushed to a field hospital
Makeshift: An injured man is rushed through the crowds to a field hospital on the back of a moped
Help: A pro-Morsi supporter is treated in a field hospital following clashes between security forces and demonstrators
Senior Brotherhood politician Saad el-Hosseini said: 'I have been trying to make the youth
withdraw for five hours. I can't. They are saying have paid with their
blood and they do not want to retreat.'
Egypt's army-installed interior
minister, Mohamed Ibrahim, said on Friday that the month-old Cairo
vigils by Morsi supporters would be 'brought to an end, soon and in a
legal manner', state-run al Ahram news website reported.
Yesterday the country's new rulers
accused Morsi of conspiring with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas
and plotting to attack police stations, army officers and prisons during
the 2011 uprising against former president Hosni Mubarak.
During the 2011 struggles, he had
escaped from a prison and has now been accused of the 'premeditated
killing of officers, soldiers and prisoners'.
Ousted: Former president Mohammed Morsi has been formally accused of a raft of crimes and is expected to be charged
Backing: Supporters of Egypt's ousted president
Mohamed Morsi take part in a demonstration in the city of Alexandria,
where at least five people died
The announcement by prosecutors of the
investigation against Morsi is likely to pave the way to a formal
indictment and eventually a trial.
It was the first news of his legal
status since he was deposed by the military on July 3. Since then, the
Islamist leader has been held incommunicado in a secret location.
Besides Morsi, five other senior figures from the group have been detained. Hassan Mohammed, a 30-year old teacher who came from southern Egypt to join the pro-Morsi rally, remained steadfast.
'Even
if we are going to die, me and my family, we won't leave this place
before our president comes back. Even if it takes seven years. We are
ready to be martyrs in the name of religion and the nation,' he said
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2379657/Egypt-Morsi-More-100-people-killed-1-000-injured-clashes-deposed-president-Morsi-formally-accused-murder-conspiracy-Hamas.html#ixzz2aIFUSN9z
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