Clashes erupted during the massive pro-Morsy demonstrations held in Egypt on Friday

Pro-Morsy demonstrators in Cairo's Nasr City

After Egypt’s first freely elected President Mohamed Morsy, who hailed from Muslim Brotherhood, was ousted by the order of Egypt’s Armed Forces on Wednesday, 3 June, following four days of massive nationwide protests against his rule, Islamist forces and supporters of the dismissed President called for the massive rallies to be held all over Egypt on Friday, 5 July.

Islamist demonstrators still remained in front of Rabaa Al-Adaweya Mosque in Cairo’s Nasr City staging the open-ended sit-in in support of the deposed President Mohamed Morsy, and after the official calls for the nationwide protests hundreds of thousands of the Muslim Brotherhood’s and Mohamed Morsy’s supporters flocked to the Mosque in Nasr City and gathered in several Egyptian governorates on Friday in the massive protests dubbed as “Friday of rejection”.

The Islamist and pro-Morsy demonstrators led by the recently formed Alliance for Support of Legitimacy which united several Islamist political powers and parties in Egypt and supports the legitimacy of the presidential position of Mohamed Morsy reject the decision taken by the military calling it the military coup against the legally elected President of the country.

Hundreds of thousands of the Morsy supporters gathered on Friday in Egyptian capital Cairo and also in other governorates, such as coastal city of Alexandria, Beheira, Upper Egypt, Suez and also in North Sinai.

Massive Islamist rally to support Mohamed Morsy

North Sinai region witnessed unprecedented violence since Thursday as several military checkpoints and military airports have been attacked by the militants. Four military and police personnel members are declared killed and there are dozens of wounded. Egypt’s military forces are deployed in the area.

In Cairo the demonstrators have been chanting for the legitimacy of Mohamed Morsy’s presidetcy and protested against Head of the Armed Forces Abdel Fattah El-Sissi for his unpopular among the Islamists decision to oust Egypt’s President. Some Muslim Brotherhood’s leaders including Mohamed Badie have been delivering speeches in front of the demonstrators calling for the peaceful protests which will continue until Mohamed Morsy will be reinstated as Egypt’s President.

The actions of the Armed Forces such as taking off several Islamist TV channels and arresting its crew and also arrest warrants against several Muslim Brotherhood’s leaders have been also strongly criticized during the marches.

Hundreds of thousands of Islamist protesters have gathered in front of Rabaa Al-Adaweya Mosque in Nasr City which became the main point of gathering for the supporters of Muslim Brotherhood during the latest week. Some other demonstrators have moved to Maspero building (state TV and Radio) and other groups have moved to the Republican Guard headquarters located in Cairo’s Heliopolis where Mohamed Morsy is reportedly being held.

Fierce clashes erupted in front of the Republican Guard headquarters as the Islamist supporters reportedly tried to storm the building so the military forces and police responded with the rounds of teargas.

Some clashes erupted also in Cairo’s Tahrir Square between the supporters of Morsy and anti-Morsy protesters still remaining in the Square. The rivals have been throwing the stones and pellets leaving dozens of wounded. There have been also the reports about deadly incidents during the clashes.

Egypt's Armed Forces deployed in Cairo and in other cities
nationwide

Security Forces and military have been also firing the teargas to disperse the crowds and tried to form the buffer to divide the groups of the rivals.

Egypt’s coastal city of Alexandria has also witnessed violent clashes as the pro- and anti-Morsy demonstrators started to clash with each other in the area of the military base. The clashes reportedly erupted after some supporters of Morsy have been harassed by the anti-Morsy demonstrators. The clashes in Alexandria resulted in nearly 300 wounded and 12 dead.

Violence also erupted in other Egyptian governorates during the pro-Morsy demonstrations held nationwide.

According to the official information of Egypt’s Health Ministry there are 17 dead and more than 300 wounded during the violence in the country of Friday, 5 July. The attacks of the militants in North Sinai and the operation of the military in response of it left four officers of police and military dead and some 20 Islamist militants.

Meanwhile the Alliance for Support of the Legitimacy has issued a statement which includes the key demands of the Islamists. Among those demands is reinstatement of Mohamed Morsy as Egypt’s legitimate and democratically elected President; dismissal of all the decisions taken by the Armed Forces during this period as those decisions considered being unconstitutional and against the law; continue to implement the Constitution which was supported by the majority of Egyptians during the Constitutional referendum; forming of the special committee to discuss and amend some of the articles of the Constitution which remain controversial; all the persons responsible for the recent violent and oppressive tactics used against the members of Muslim Brotherhood during the protests to be held accountable.