Six Dead as Thousands of Mursi Supporters March in Egypt

Local Editor

Thousands of supporters of ousted president Mohamed Mursi marched through Cairo and cities across Egypt on Friday to demand his reinstatement, in the movement's biggest show of defiance since hundreds of protesters were killed two weeks ago.

Although most marches passed without major incident, a security source said there had been at least six deaths, and police fired teargas at protesters in Cairo's Mohandiseen district.

The army-backed government, which has shot dead hundreds of supporters of Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood since he was toppled by the military on July 3, had warned that forces posted at key intersections since morning would open fire if protests turned violent.

The security source said there had been at least 50 injured throughout Egypt, in addition to the six dead, and more than 20 arrests. The cabinet issued a statement after the protests saying that anyone who disregarded the curfew would face legal consequences.
The demonstrators appeared mostly to have opted for numerous scattered protests.
Just after Friday prayers, around 500 protesters set off from central Cairo's Sahib Rumi mosque, chanting: "Wake up, don't be afraid, the army must leave", "The Interior Ministry are thugs" and "Egypt is Islamic, not secular".
Soldiers and helmeted police in black uniforms and bulletproof vests, armed with teargas and semi-automatic rifles, manned checkpoints near the protests and blocked roads.
In Egypt's second city, Alexandria, a total of more than 10,000 protesters took part in several separate demonstrations.

Marches were also held in several cities in the Nile Delta including Tanta, in the three Suez Canal cities of Suez, Ismailia and Port Said, and in the southern city of Assiut.
The Brotherhood's London press office circulated an email with links to video streams from what it said were protests in 15 districts of Cairo, as well as 32 in other towns and cities.
"This revolutionary wave will not stop," Brotherhood politician Farid Ismail said by phone from an undisclosed location.
He said the numbers of those who had demonstrated despite "intimidation, teargas, live bullets and detentions" had been hugely underreported.
"This will continue in the coming weeks," he said.

Armed forces chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and the government he backs appear to have won broad public support in their fight against terrorism.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team