Supporters and opponents of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi have staged rival rallies across the country ahead of a mass protest planned by the opposition for Sunday.
Several thousand Morsi supporters rallied outside the main mosque in Cairo's Nasr district, two days before the anniversary of his inauguration. Opponents assembled in several parts of Cairo, including Tahrir Square. Fighting broke out between opposition marchers and Islamists in Alexandria. At least nine people were injured in Alexandria, Egypt's second city, when birdshot was fired in clashes outside a local office of the Muslim Brotherhood, which backs the president. A Muslim Brotherhood-funded TV channel said petrol bombs were thrown in another northern area, Sharqia. Officials say at least four people have died in northern Egypt in violence linked to the political situation in the past few days. The Muslim Brotherhood says the dead were supporters of the movement. Security is tight in many areas with troops deployed in Cairo and elsewhere.