Egypt has declared a state of emergency as the death toll in clashes between the Egyptian Military and the Muslim Brotherhood has climbed from 95 to over 500 dead. Many of those dead were killed by Egyptian security forces while protesting against the removal of President Mohamed Morsi.
Egyptian authorities on Thursday significantly raised the death toll from clashes the previous day between police and supporters of the ousted Islamist president, saying more than 500 people died and laying bare the extent of the violence that swept much of the country and prompted the government to declare a nationwide state of emergency and a nighttime curfew.
The death toll, which stood at 525, according to the latest Health Ministry figures, makes Wednesday by far the deadliest day since the 2011 popular uprising that toppled longtime ruler and autocrat Hosni Mubarak – a grim milestone that does not bode well for the future of a nation roiled in turmoil and divisions for the past 2 1/2 years.
The interim Vice President, Mohamed ElBaradei, resigned in protest as the killings by the Egyptian Military began. ElBaradei’s resignation signals for many a lack of civilian and liberal support for the military’s brutal crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood.
Egypt’s acting vice president Mohamed ElBaradei resigned hours after Egyptian security forces crushed a protest camp of thousands of supporters of the deposed president on Wednesday, shooting dead scores of people in the bloodiest day in decades in the Arab world’s most populous country.
With diminishing domestic civilian support and international condemnation the future of the military regime in Egypt is uncertain. US aid may even be in jeopardy despite the Obama Administration not labeling the military takeover in Egypt a coup.
Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood is more determined than ever to bring down the current government of Egypt, and seems more than willing to suffer the casualties necessary to do so.
