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Morsi Supporters, Military Backers Scuffle in Cairo

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Police detain a supporter of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi during clashes in central Cairo
Police detain a supporter of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi during clashes in central Cairo
Supporters and opponents of ousted president Mohamed Morsi battled in the streets of downtown Cairo on Tuesday, showing Egypt remained dangerously split six weeks after the army overthrew him in response to mass unrest against his rule.

As demonstrators hurled rocks at each other and police fired volleys of tear gas, an initiative by Al-Azhar, a top religious authority, to resolve the crisis appeared to inch forward.

The Nour Party, the second biggest Islamist group, forecast that Al-Azhar-backed talks in pursuit of a solution would happen very soon while Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood signaled it was ready to take part as long as they were on the right terms.

Brotherhood protest camps in Cairo’s al-Nahda Square and around Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque are the immediate focus of the crisis. Morsi backers stood firm behind barricades on Tuesday as Egypt’s interim leaders debated how to end their sit-in.

No police crackdown appeared imminent despite frequent warnings from the army-installed government that the protesters should pack up and leave peacefully.

But clashes broke out in central Cairo when a few thousand Morsi supporters marched to the Interior Ministry.

Pro-army residents and shopworkers taunted them, calling them terrorists and saying they were not welcome. They then threw stones at the marchers, getting showered back in return.

Some hurled bottles at the Morsi supporters from balconies. Police then fired tear gas at the demonstrators. Women and children marchers fled the scene in panic. The clashes spread to several streets and brought Cairo traffic to a standstill.

“There’s no going forward with negotiations, the only way is back. Morsi must be reinstated,” said Karim Ahmed, a student in a blue hard-hat who waved a picture of Morsi as he flung rocks at a ministry building.

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