Egyptian security forces clash with anti-Mohamed Morsi protesters

By Dilip -

Egyptian security forces have clashed with opponents of Mohamed Morsiwho gathered outside the presidential palace in Cairo to protest against his assumption of new powers. The march came amid rising anger over decrees Morsi has passed that give him sweeping powers. Opponents say the drafting of a new constitution has been rushed and is a move towards dictatorial rule. Morsi has called for a referendum on the draft constitution on 15 December. Marchers chanted that "the people want the downfall of the regime", and held placards bearing slogans of "no to the constitution".
One witness said he had seen Morsi's convoy leave the palace from a side gate during the clashes. He said: "I was part of the Abbasiya march. When the fighting started a lot of teargas was fired and we were pushed back. The barbed wire barricade was opened, a convoy of cars left the palace, and then we were allowed to come closer. After that, we entered the street." The protests came as Egypt's public prosecutor referred a complaint against three former presidential candidates to the country's state prosecution service for espionage and plotting against the state.
The complaint against Mohamed El Baradei, Hamdein Sabahy and Amr Moussa, as well as Wafd party leader Sayed Badawi, was filed by Hamed Sadek, a lawyer who is accusing the opposition figureheads of being embroiled in a "Zionist plot" to overthrow the Islamist-led government. Egypt's near-daily protests represent the country's worst political crisis since Hosni Mubarak was ousted, nearly two years ago. Since then the country has been divided, with Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhoodalongside ultraconservative Salafi Islamists on one side, and youth groups and more liberal organisations on the other.
Thousands had marched towards the presidential palace to protest a decree that granted president Mohamed Morsi extraordinary powers ahead of a planned referendum on a constitution also opposed by the demonstrators. Security forces cordoned the palace off with barbed wire, at which most protesters stopped to chant slogans against Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood. Read more:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/04/egyptian-clash-mohamed-morsi-protest

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