U.S. expresses Concern about Violence in Egypt

The United States on Friday expressed concern about the ongoing violence in Egypt, but called the military rulers’ commitment to the presidential election “encouraging.”

“We very much remain concerned about the ongoing violence in Egypt,” State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters.

“As you know, we’ve called on the government there to investigate all of these incidents fully,” he said at a regular news briefing. “We want to see peaceful protest take place. We want to see all parties have the space necessary to have an open, honest political dialogue and debate about Egypt’s future.”

Egypt has seen sporadic bouts of deadly violence since the ouster of its longtime ruler Hosni Mubarak in February 2011 in mass anti-government protests.

As the most populous Arab nation is bracing itself for the historic presidential vote on May 23-24, fresh violence broke out on Wednesday when protesters against the military rule were attacked by a group of unidentified people outside the Defense Ministry, resulting in 11 deaths and some 168 injuries.

Thousands of protesters clashed with military police on Friday before the Ministry of Defense in Abbasiya district in Cairo, leaving 59 people injured, prompting the ruling Egyptian Supreme Council of Armed Forces to impose curfew in the Abbasiya square and area around the Defense Ministry.

However, the military rulers said on Thursday that they are committed to fair elections and handing over power to a civilian administration on July 1.

“That’s certainly encouraging,” Toner said about the commitment, according to Xinhua.