Report: Morsi taken to Presidential Guard's headquarters
Ahead of mass protests, Egyptian paper reports president, family moved from their Cairo home. Death toll rises to 8 after bomb explodes in Port Said protest
The Egyptian newspaper Al-Masri Al-Youm reported on Saturday that Mohamed Morsi and his family were moved on Thursday from their home to the Presidential Guard headquarters in Cairo.
At the same time, the Alarabiya network reported that one man was killed and five injured by a bomb blast in the al-Masla square in the city of Port Said. During the blast thousands of ant-Morsi demonstrators were at the scene.
Related stories:
- Israeli flag burned as protests sweep Egypt
- Report: 4 'Mossad men' in Egypt charged with espionage
- 2 dead in Egypt clashes as Morsi prepares for speech
Morsi, it was reported, will remain in the Guard's headquarters for the next few days, in light of the protestors' plan to demonstrate on Sunday in front of the Presidential Palace Al-Ithadia.
Video courtesy of jn1.tv
The death toll in the violent clashes, which erupted Wednesday, rose to eight after a 14-year-old boy, stabbed in Alexandria on Friday, died of his wounds Saturday.
The teen was stabbed during clashes between Morsi supporters and anti-regime protestors.
Anti-Morsi protest in Alexandria (Photo: AFP)
Thousands protest in Cairo (Photo: AP)
(Photo: Reuters)
According to the report, the president held Friday's prayer in the headquarters, contrary to his usual practice.
The sources cited by the newspaper noted that the Presidential Palace was shut and barricaded ahead of Sunday's "Day of Rage" demonstrations. They added that the Palace's employees were moved to the Presidential Office's old lodgings, next to the Guard's headquarters.
Meanwhile, the youth group leading the campaign against Egypt's president says it has collected the signatures of 22 million Egyptians who want to remove Morsi from power.
Mahmoud Badr, a leader of the Tamarod, or rebel, movement said Saturday that 22,134,460 Egyptians have signed the petition demanding President Mohammed Morsi's ouster.
Badr did not say whether there had been an independent audit of the signatures.
On Friday, anti-Morsi demonstrators in Cairo spread a huge Israeli flag in front of the Defense Ministry, defaced it with slogans and swastikas before finally setting it on fire.
Israeli flag burning (Photo: EPA)
According to Al-Masri Al-Youm, the Cairo flag burning was intended to protest what they termed "the American and Zionist interference in Egypt's affair."
Due to the escalating violence in the streets, the US State Department issued a travel warning to its citizens, calling them to avoid entering the country except on vital cases.
The US also confirmed the death of an American citizen in clashes in Alexandria: Andrew Pochter, a 21-year-old student from Chevy Chase, Maryland who had been working as an intern for the US organization AMIDEAST, an NGO which deals with education in the Middle East and northern Africa.
At the same time in Cairo's Tahrir Square thousands more gathered, called for Morsi's oust and burned his photographs.
"Morsi, wake up, June 30 is your last day," they chanted.
But Alexandria stood at the focus of the clashes, as two were killed and at least 70 injured in the coastal city.
Meanwhile, Morsi's supporters also took to the streets, gathered around the famous Rabaa al-Adwaia mosque in Cairo, hoisted the president's photographs and urged the populace to remain home during
Sunday's planned mass anti-Morsi demos.
Facing the fierce protest on both sides, Egyptian religious figures released a statement on Friday cautioning against a civil war. "We must remain vigilant to ensure we do not descend into civil war," read the statement issued by A-Zahar University, considered Sunni Islam's most prominent scholarly institution.
The statement voiced support for President Morsi and castigated "bands of outlaws" for allegedly laying siege to Cairo's mosques.
- Receive Ynetnews updates
directly to your desktop
