3 killed in Egypt during pro-Morsi protest

At least three people were killed as Egyptian police dispersed a Friday protest staged by supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi in the central Giza province, eyewitnesses and a pro-Morsi bloc said.

A young man, identified as Ali Magdi Salem, was shot dead by mistake when he suffered a fatal gunshot wound inside his home in Al-Atf village in Ayyat when security forces dispersed a pro-Morsi protest that was being held in his neighborhood, eyewitnesses said.

Two more others were announced later to have been killed in subsequent shooting.

An eyewitness said that Salem was killed while watching the march from his balcony while two more, identified as Mohamed Menshawi and Mohamed Abu Setta, were shot dead when residents gathered following the shooting of Salem.

The three victims were not participating in the protest, the eyewitness asserted.

The source of the fire remains unclear, but security agencies and pro-Morsi groups typically trade blame when such incidents occur.

The rally comes as part of weeklong protests called by the pro-Morsi National Alliance for the Defense of Legitimacy to oppose the inauguration of former army chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi – who led the army to oust democratically elected Morsi last July – as president.

In a statement, the alliance confirmed the three deaths and asserted that Salem was from a family that used to support al-Sisi. The alliance also accused “al-Sisi’s militias” of being behind the killings.

Al-Sisi was declared the winner of last week's presidential election, in which he clinched almost 97 percent of the vote, according to Egypt's election commission.

While supporters describe Morsi's ouster last summer as a "military coup," opponents term it a "military-backed revolution."

Several clashes are reported to have taken place around Egypt after the Friday prayers as anti-Sisi protesters took to the streets to protest against his election.

There was further violence in a  desert area in the central Minya province on Friday when Egyptian security forces killed two "extremists" in an exchange of fire in according to the Interior Ministry.