Egyptian security forces arrested 235 Muslim Brotherhood members during Friday rallies staged by supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi, the Interior Ministry said in a statement on January 3. According to the ministry, the arrests were made in the provinces of Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Fayoum, Ismailia and Qena. The Health Ministry said earlier that at least 14 people were killed and scores injured in the violence that marred the Friday protests. The National Alliance for the Defence of Legitimacy put the death toll at 17.
The Interior Ministry statement accused protesters of blocking roads, torching property, and using firearms and Molotov cocktails to “attack citizens and police.” The Brotherhood, however, has denied any involvement in the attack, which it denounced as an “act of terror.” For the last 185 days, anti-coup protesters have staged daily rallies to denounce what they describe as the July 3 “military coup” against Morsi and demand his reinstatement. Several people were injured in clashes between anti-coup protesters and police in the village of Dalga in Egypt’s southern Minya province, eyewitnesses said.