Clashes outside Egypt's Ittihadiya palace

Anti-government protesters and Egyptian security forces have clashed outside Ittihadiya presidential palace, after demonstrators tried to break in through the fourth gate of the building. Witnesses told Arabstoday that demonstrators attacked the security forces with stones and petrol bombs, leading the security personnel to respond with tear gas as a means of dispersing the crowd. A security source confirmed that Cairo Police Chief Osama el-Saghir bolstered the amount of officers deployed outside the presidential palace to thwart the protesters' attempts. The security source added that police officers had been able to maintain self-control and did not open fire on the demonstrators, resorting to tear gas. A large crowd of protesters belonging to Egypt's liberal political movements had gathered outside Ittihadiya presidential palace on Friday to denounce the policies of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood and President Mohammed Morsi.