Chama cha kiislamu cha Muslim Brothershood cha Misri kimesema kuwa kitafanya maandamano ya hasira leo baada ya swala ya Ijumaa licha ya Jeshi la nchi hiyo kupiga marufuku maandamano hayo. Chama hicho kilipoteza wanachama wake takriban 600 juzi jumatano pale walipokaidi amri ya kuondoka katika misikiti waliyokuwa wamekaa kupinga kuondolewa madarakani kwa aliyekuwa rais wa nchi hiyo Mohamed Morsi. Wakati wanajeshi wameshajihami kwa kuzuia maandamano hayo kwa silaha nzito, wizara ya mambo ya ndani imesema risasi za moto zitatumika kwa watakaokaidi amri halali ya serikali.
Wakati huo huo maelfu ya Wamisri wasiopenda utawala wa Muslim Brotherhood wameendelea kulipongeza jeshi hilo kwa hatua kali walizochukua dhidi ya chama cha muslim brotherhood.
Wachambuzi wa masuala ya mashariki ya kati wanabashiri kuwa huenda leo kukawa na umwagaji damu mkubwa kama vyombo vya usalama na wafuasi wa Morsi hawatajizuia.
A
supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt's ousted president
Mohamed Morsi fires fireworks towards police during clashes in Cairo, on
August 14, 2013. Egypt's Islamists called for a "Friday of anger" in
Cairo after nearly 600 people were killed following a crackdown on their
protest camps, as the UN urged "maximum restraint" from all sides.
There were renewed attacks on security forces during a tense day on Thursday, with at least seven soldiers and a policeman killed in the Sinai Peninsula and another police officer killed in the central city of Assiut.
With the country under a state of emergency and many provinces hit by night-time curfews, the interior ministry ordered police to use live fire if government buildings came under attack.
International criticism of the bloodshed poured in and the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting on the crisis at the request of France, Britain and Australia.
Gehad al-Haddad, a Brotherhood spokesman, announced Friday's marches on his Twitter account.
"Anti-coup rallies... will depart from all mosques of Cairo and head towards Ramsis square after (traditional Friday) prayer in 'Friday of Anger,'" he wrote.
Laila Moussa, a spokeswoman for the Anti-Coup Alliance of Islamist groups opposing Morsi's ouster, said similar protests were planned across the country.
She said Morsi loyalists, including at least two former members of parliament, had been arrested in dawn raids ahead of the protests.
On Thursday, Tamarod, the protest group that organised opposition to Morsi's rule, also urged Egyptians to take to the streets.
It said they should turn out on Friday "to reject domestic terrorism and foreign interference."
Ahead of the marches, the international community expressed grave concern.
In New York, the Argentine ambassador to the UN, Maria Cristina Perceval, whose country currently presides over the Security Council, said member states regretted the loss of life in Cairo, called for an end to the violence and spoke of the need to advance "national reconciliation."
In Washington, US President Barack Obama responded by announcing the cancellation of a joint US-Egyptian military exercise.
"While we want to sustain our relationship with Egypt, our traditional cooperation cannot continue as usual when civilians are being killed in the streets and rights are being rolled back," he said.
But despite scrapping the Bright Star exercise, which has been scheduled every two years since 1981, he stopped short of suspending Washington's annual $1.3 billion in aid to Egypt.
Meanwhile, the US State Department warned citizens not to travel to Egypt and called on those already there to leave.
Egypt's presidency responded defiantly to Obama's remarks, warning that "statements not based on facts may encourage violent armed groups."
"The presidency appreciates US concern for developments in Egypt, but it wished it could have clarified matters," said the statement on the official MENA news agency.
Governments in several European capitals summoned Egyptian envoys to voice their concern, and Turkey recalled its ambassador to Cairo in protest.
UN rights chief Navi Pillay meanwhile called for "an independent, impartial, effective and credible investigation of the conduct of the security forces."
"The number of people killed or injured, even according to the government's figures, point to an excessive, even extreme use of force against demonstrators," she said.
On Thursday, Morsi supporters had called for new protests, but only sporadic marches were reported, all outside of Cairo.
Instead, loyalists focused on retrieving and burying their dead, with more than 200 bodies lined up for identification by grieving relatives in one Cairo mosque.
On Thursday evening, police entered the mosque after a brief standoff with protesters.
State media said ambulances were waiting to transport around 43 bodies that remained in the building to hospitals for identification.
Sporadic violence continued, including in Sinai, where seven soldiers and a police officer were killed in attacks.
Another police officer was killed in Assiut, and a governorate building in Cairo was set alight by protesters.
Activists reported ongoing attacks on churches, allegedly by Morsi loyalists.
The Anti-Coup Alliance condemned the attacks on Friday in a statement that accused some Christians of supporting Morsi's ouster.
"Although some Coptic leaders supported or even participated in the coup, no such attacks can be justifiable," it said.
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