Sectarian Clashes Leave More Than 50 Injured In Central Cairo

Health officials in the Egyptian capital, Cairo, say today at least 50 people have been injured in clashes in the city center between Muslims and Coptic Christians.

The clashes broke out May 14 after a young Muslim used a hunting rifle to fire on a group of Christians who had been staging a sit-in protest against sectarian violence that left 15 people dead last week.

Dozens of other people threw Molotov cocktails at the protesters, who responded by throwing stones.

The MENA news agency cites Heath Ministry official Ayman Ragab as saying most of the wounded suffer from fractures and bruises.

Police and army forces arrested some of the attackers.

The clashes come just three months after public protests ousted leader Hosni Mubarak, and at a time when religious tensions appear to be on the rise.

compiled from agency reports