STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- An American teaching English was a bystander when he was stabbed, family says
- Egyptian troops deployed nationwide to curb unrest, military says
- Several members of the Muslim Brotherhood have been killed
- President Morsy’s one-year anniversary is Sunday
Cairo (CNN) — Supporters of Egypt’s embattled president clashed with his opponents in the port city of Alexandria early Saturday, state media reported, a day ahead of the controversial leader’s one-year anniversary in office.
The violence between the two sides left behind casualties.
A protester stabbed an American watching demonstrations Friday. Andrew Pochter, 21, of Maryland, was in the country to teach English to elementary school children. An Egyptian man also died of a gunshot wound to the head, the health ministry said.
Dozens of people were injured, according to state media.
Protesters demanding the ouster of President Mohamed Morsy ransacked the Alexandria offices of his Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of the religiously conservative Muslim Brotherhood.
In response to the unruly protests, Egypt’s government has deployed military security forces to patrol the streets, state media reported.
The violent scenes on the streets and deployment of heavy security are reminiscent of those that played out in January 2011, when autocratic former President Hosni Mubarak was forced from power.
Accepted order vs. change
But Morsy is not Mubarak. He was democratically elected.
Those results should be respected, say his supporters, who have poured into the streets by the thousands, commonly chanting their protest slogan: “Democratic legitimacy is a red line.”
Their show of support kicked off Friday in the Cairo neighborhood of Nasr City. In return, Morsy’s opponents have organized nationwide large-scale rallies.
They have called for a sit-in in front of the presidential palace in Cairo.
The president’s opponents have spent months passing around a petition calling for Morsy to step down and call new elections.
They are made up of a coalition of groups with varying interests. Liberals, moderates and pro-democracy advocates have come together with citizens who want the military to take over government and restore law and order.
Some are even calling for Mubarak’s return to office.
Muslim Brotherhood under fire
Since Morsy took office, Egypt’s already sour economy has plummeted even further, and investors have pulled out of the country in droves.
As crime rates in Egypt have shot up, some are calling for a return to the law and order they knew under Mubarak’s autocratic rule paired with the iron hand of the military.
Morsy gave a speech this week highlighting his achievements during his first year in office.
But opposition members said he did not address his shortcomings, and issued a statement calling for snap presidential polls, a new government and constitutional amendments.
The Muslim Brotherhood, which fought against Mubarak’s rule for decades before coming to power, has lost four members to violence in recent days.
Two people were shot dead Thursday when armed men attacked Muslim Brotherhood offices in Zagazig, Morsy’s hometown, spokesman Gihad Haddad said. The gunmen were shouting “Down with Morsy” during the assault, he said.
Protecting American interests
Governments around the world are paying attention — at the least, to make sure that their own workers and citizens are safe.
About 200 U.S. Marines in Sigonella, Italy, and Moron, Spain, have been put on alert as a precaution, according to two officials in President Barack Obama’s administration.
The State Department issued an alert warning Americans not to travel to or within Egypt unless it was essential.
The United States has approved the departure of embassy and consulate employees and their dependents, because of the brewing unrest, a senior State Department official said. Nonessential employees and their relatives can get help leaving, if they choose to do so.
Pochter, the American student killed, wanted to improve his Arabic before returning to college in the United States. “He cared profoundly about the Middle East,” his family said.
He was planning a career in the region in hopes of forwarding the peace process.
U.S. Marines told to be ready to go to Egypt
CNN’s Elise Labott and Barbara Starr contributed to this report.
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Deadly clashes over President Morsy
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