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Nine dead in Egypt amid clashes over ousting of President Morsi

A man fires his weapon during clashes between opponents and supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo on Monday.
A man fires his weapon during clashes between opponents and supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo on Monday.Hussein Malla / AP
Opponents of ousted President Mohammed Morsi carry their injured friend who was wounded during clashes with Morsi supporters in Cairo on Monday.
Opponents of ousted President Mohammed Morsi carry their injured friend who was wounded during clashes with Morsi supporters in Cairo on Monday.Hussein Malla / AP

CAIRO - A day and night of clashes between supporters and opponents of ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi left nine dead and wounded close to 90 in and around the capital Cairo, health officials said Tuesday.

Six people were killed and 33 wounded overnight in violence near Cairo University, where hundreds of Morsi backers have been holding a sit-in to protest his removal by the army earlier this month, Health Ministry Director of Emergency Care Services Dr. Khalid el Khatib said.  

Police sources told Reuters that Morsi supporters clashed with residents and street vendors at the university's Giza campus, just south of Cairo.  

One was killed in violence near Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the protest movement that culminated in the removal from power for authoritarian president Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11, 2011. Two died in clashes in Qaloubya City, to the north of Cairo.

Nearly fifty were wounded in clashes in Tahrir, Qalyoub  City and Cairo's Madinat Nasr.

Close to 100 have died in violence since the army overthrew Morsi, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, on July 3 after a nationwide movement.

A man fires his weapon during clashes between opponents and supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo on Monday.
A man fires his weapon during clashes between opponents and supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi in Cairo on Monday.Hussein Malla / AP

The Islamist president has been held incommunicado at an undisclosed location since the power shift, which the Muslim Brotherhood -- and countries in the region including Turkey -- consider a coup.

Both sides accuse each other of instigating the violence, and supporters of the deposed president, who are holding round-the-clock vigils to protest the army's move, have complained that police are not protecting them when heir marches come under attack by thugs.

And some residents close to the Brotherhood protests have filed a complaint demanding they be removed.

A security source told Reuters that the case was expected to ruled on soon "to give the army a legal basis to end the protests." 

On Monday, Morsi's family accused the military of "kidnapping" him and said they would seek help from the International Criminal Court.

In the first statement from Morsi's family since his July 3 overthrow by the military, his daughter Shaimaa told a news conference in Cairo that they hold the army responsible for his "safety and security."

Reuters contributed to this report.

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