Egyptian military detains 170 protesters after unrest

More than 170 people are being detained after deadly clashes between protesters and security forces in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, military sources said.

Those being held are among 320 people arrested on Friday outside the defence ministry, after violence killed one soldier and left hundreds wounded.

Military chief Mohamed Tantawi attended the public funeral of the soldier, which was held in Cairo on Saturday.

The violence comes less than three weeks before presidential polls.

Friday’s arrests came after protesters tried to break through an army roadblock to reach the ministry, in Cairo’s Abbassiya district, resulting in clashes with the army which lasted several hours.

The area is now reported to be calm after the lifting of a curfew imposed last night.

The protesters had been angry at the generals’ failure to protect a demonstration on Wednesday which came under attack from armed men, resulting in the deaths of at least 20 people.