Officials says security forces are firing tear gas into Cairo protest
The Associated Press
Posted: Aug 14, 2013 1:49 AM ET
Last Updated: Aug 14, 2013 1:57 AM ET
Supporters of Egypt's ousted president Mohammed Morsi rally Tuesday at a site near the Cairo University campus, where armoured carriers were securing the area on Wednesday. (Amr Nabil/Associated Press)
Egyptian security forces, backed by armoured cars and bulldozers, moved on Wednesday to clear two sit-in camps by supporters of the country's ousted President Mohammed Morsi, showering protesters with tear gas, state television and security officials said.
An Associated Press television video journalist at the scene of the larger of the two camps said he could hear the screams of women as a cloud of white smoke hung over the site in the eastern Cairo suburb of Nasr City.
He said an army bulldozer was removing mounds of sand bags and brick walls built by the protesters as a defence line in the Nasr City camp. Army troops, however, were not taking part in the operation.
The simultaneous actions by the Egyptian forces — at the pro-Morsi encampment in Nasr City and at the site outside the main campus of Cairo University in Giza — began at around 7 a.m. (0500 GMT)
The pan-Arab Al-Arabiya TV is showing images of collapsed tents and burning tires at the Nasr City protest site. Ambulances are also seen at the scene, as well as some protesters being arrested and led away by the troops.
The Anti-Coup Alliance, an umbrella of pro-Morsi supporters, said in a statement that there are dozens of dead and injured so far in Wednesday's attacks.
At least 250 people have died in clashes in Egypt following Morsi's ouster in a military coup that followed days of mass protests by millions of Egyptians calling for his removal.
Supporters of the Islamist president want him reinstated.
© The Associated Press, 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment