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| Egyptian Forces Move to Clear Out Pro-Morsi Sit-Ins in Cairo | Egyptian Forces Move to Clear Out Pro-Morsi Sit-Ins in Cairo |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| CAIRO — The Egyptian authorities moved on Wednesday to clear two camps in Cairo occupied by supporters of the ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, with armored vehicles, bulldozers and helicopters supporting security forces who showered protesters with tear gas, according to witnesses and television reports. | |
| Some witnesses spoke of gunfire, and there were unconfirmed reports of dozens of fatalities. | |
| Hours after the operation began, the authorities said they had cleared the smaller of two encampments near Cairo University, but reporters elsewhere in the city said protesters at the larger camp near the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque to the east were resisting security forces. | |
| The coordinated action against the pro-Morsi supporters, which had been expected for days, began around 7 a.m. local time. The protesters are seeking the reinstatement of Mr. Morsi, who became Egypt’s first democratically elected president in 2012 and was deposed by the military six weeks ago. In removing Mr. Morsi, the military also suspended the Constitution and installed an interim government presided over by a senior jurist. | The coordinated action against the pro-Morsi supporters, which had been expected for days, began around 7 a.m. local time. The protesters are seeking the reinstatement of Mr. Morsi, who became Egypt’s first democratically elected president in 2012 and was deposed by the military six weeks ago. In removing Mr. Morsi, the military also suspended the Constitution and installed an interim government presided over by a senior jurist. |
| Mr. Morsi is being held at an undisclosed location. The military authorities have taken steps toward his criminal prosecution on charges relating to his activities during the revolution that ousted his predecessor, Hosni Mubarak. | |
| While Egyptians broadly consider Mr. Mubarak’s autocracy to have been fundamentally illegitimate, Mr. Morsi is now under investigation for his own escape from political imprisonment and his work in the Islamist political opposition that helped to topple Mr. Mubarak in 2011. | While Egyptians broadly consider Mr. Mubarak’s autocracy to have been fundamentally illegitimate, Mr. Morsi is now under investigation for his own escape from political imprisonment and his work in the Islamist political opposition that helped to topple Mr. Mubarak in 2011. |
| His detention showed the depth of the gulf in Egyptian society between an Islamist movement, long sustained by the Muslim Brotherhood, and secular forces. | His detention showed the depth of the gulf in Egyptian society between an Islamist movement, long sustained by the Muslim Brotherhood, and secular forces. |
| As the security forces moved in on Wednesday, the Muslim Brotherhood office in London called the operation a “massacre” and said 30 people had been killed in the action. Protest groups in Cairo said 25 people had been killed, and Egypt’s state news agency reported that two members of the security forces had been shot and killed. The Egyptian health ministry said there had been no deaths among the protesters. | |
| The thousands of protesters at one camp had built a line of sandbags and walls to shield the area, and witnesses said an army bulldozer had moved in to dismantle it. | |
| Images on Al Jazeera television showed a car ablaze and protesters being treated for bloody injuries. Protesters’ tents appeared to have been razed, and a pillar of black smoke rose above palm trees in one of the areas. The footage showed what appeared to be a gunman firing from a rooftop, but the shooter’s identity was not immediately clear. | |
| Black-uniformed police wearing gas masks and helmets dragged and carried away protesters, the footage showed. At least one of them showed no sign of life as his limp body was loaded into an ambulance. The police seemed to be rounding up protesters in groups as they fled the barrages of tear gas. The footage also showed smoke from burning tires. | |
| An Associated Press television video journalist at the larger of the camps said he heard women screaming as a cloud of white smoke hung over the site in eastern Cairo. | An Associated Press television video journalist at the larger of the camps said he heard women screaming as a cloud of white smoke hung over the site in eastern Cairo. |
| According to a recent visitor, the bigger of the camps was always likely to present the authorities with a greater challenge. Tens of thousands of people have built a well-equipped community there with electricity, Internet access, a hospital, communal kitchens, latrines and showers. | |
| While dozens of people have been killed by the police and the military since the sit-ins began, analysts said, the crackdowns on the protesters seemed to have reinforced their conviction to stay. | |
David D. Kirkpatrick reported from Cairo and Alan Cowell from London | David D. Kirkpatrick reported from Cairo and Alan Cowell from London |