Philippines: 200 Feared Dead After Ferry Crash

A ferry with more than 800 passengers and crew on board has sunk after colliding with a cargo ship near the Philippine city of Cebu.

The coastguard said the MV Thomas Aquinas listed after hitting the Sulpicio Express Seven Cargo vessel and the captain gave the order to abandon ship.

Life rafts around the cargo ship that collided with the ferry

At least 31 people, including some children, were confirmed dead, 629 were rescued and 171 were still unaccounted for, the coastguard said.

Rear Admiral Luis Tuason, vice commandant of the coastguard, warned that the number of dead would inevitably rise.

He said: "The captain managed to declare abandon ship and they distributed life jackets but, because of the speed by which it went down, there is a big chance that there are people trapped inside."

A man is pulled to safety by Navy rescuerers

He added that the ferry sank within 10 minutes of the collision on Friday night at a narrow point near the port of Cebu.

Hundreds of passengers jumped into the ocean as the ship began sinking, said survivors. Many of the 831 on board were asleep at the time of the collision.

Life rafts deployed by the ferry after the collision

Jerwin Agudong said he and other passengers leapt overboard after the ferry began taking on water and the crew distributed life jackets.

He told radio station DZBB that some people were trapped and he saw bodies in the water.

"It seems some were not able to get out. I pity the children. We saw dead bodies on the side, and some being rescued," he said.

An injured survivor is taken to hospital

"One of the persons who jumped with us hit his head on metal. He is shaking and he is bloodied."

According to news reports, an 11-month-old baby was among those saved.

Danny Palmero, a former fisherman, said he was with friends who responded to the ferry's distress call and rescued seven people on their motorized outrigger canoe.

Some of the rescued passengers

"I saw many flares being shot," he said. "As a former nautical student, I knew it was a distress signal."

Accidents at sea are common in the Philippine archipelago because of frequent storms, badly maintained boats and weak enforcement of safety regulations.

In 1987, the ferry Dona Paz sank after colliding with a fuel tanker in the Philippines, killing 4,341 people in the world's worst peacetime maritime disaster.

The ferry sank after hitting the cargo ship near Cebu

In 2008, the ferry MV Princess of the Stars capsized during a typhoon, killing nearly 800 people.

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Michael Jackson Glove: US Fights Dictator's Son

The US government is embroiled in a legal battle to stop a gem-encrusted glove worn by Michael Jackson falling into the hands of an African dictator's son.

The late singer's glove was bought with dirty money by Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo's son Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, the US claims.

The latest hearing in the 28-month-old case - "United States of America v One White Crystal-Covered 'Bad Tour' Glove and Other Michael Jackson Memorabilia" - will be heard in a Los Angeles courtroom on Monday.

In April 2011, US authorities seized assets worth some $71m (£45m) from Obiang Jr, who owns a collection of Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, a $38m (£25m) private jet, and a $30m (£20m) mansion in Malibu, California.

More than 70% of Equatorial Guinea's population lives in poverty, but President Obiang and his cohorts have amassed huge fortunes through corruption, the US claims.

According to Washington's lawsuit, Obiang Jr, who was appointed forestry minister by his father, has "amassed over $300m in net worth, all while earning an income of less than $100,000 per year as an unelected public official appointed by his father."

Obiang Jr, 42, who first moved to America in 1991, is alleged to have laundered stolen public funds in banks across the globe.

The Thriller singer died in Los Angeles in 2009 from an overdose

Three years ago, the aspiring rap music mogul bought a number of items from Michael Jackson's estate, including the glove.

Last year, the French government seized a £68m mansion in Paris belonging to Obiang Jr, where they found millions more in luxury goods and cars, according to The Independent.

However, in April 2012, a California judge threw out the US government's case, saying it had failed to prove that Obiang Jr had amassed his fortune by illegal means in Equatorial Guinea, where he had never been charged with any crime.

The US has now been allowed to file an amended version of its complaint.

Obiang Jr's lawyers argued in a brief filed last month that the US still has no grounds to retain his pop souvenirs.

"The government still has not identified a single victim of extortion or bribery," the papers said.

"In short, all that the government has is evidence that [the] Claimant spent money. Where the money came from is a matter of pure speculation."

The Thriller singer died in Los Angeles in 2009 from an overdose of the surgical anaesthetic propofol.

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A £350m Donation To Nation That Can't Be Used

An unspent donation made to the Government 85 years ago, which is now worth £350m, cannot be touched because it won't fulfil conditions of its use - paying off the national debt.

The anonymous donation of £500,000 was made in 1928 and established a fund which was designed to help the Government pay off the UK's debt.

It was made with a strict request that it should not be touched until it was able to reduce the national debt to zero.

Although it has grown 700-fold since the 1920s, it is unlikely to achieve its target - the national debt currently stands at £1.3trillion.

While the fund is growing at a rate of £5m to £10m a year, Britain's national debt rocketed by an estimated £121bn in 2011/12.

In the meantime, the fund, called The National Fund, is now managed by Barclays and is likely to keep on growing.

The anonymous donor who set it up at its outset is believed to have done so in response by a call from Conservative Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, who wrote to the Financial Times in 1919.

He suggested it would be patriotic for British citizens to contribute towards paying off the national debt, which at that point had reached 140% of the total amount of money earned in one year by the UK (GDP).

Barclays Wealth and Investment Management is the fund's trustee

By 1927, the national debt had reached 160% of GDP and it is thought that the donor was prompted to set up the fund with the belief that it would grow sufficiently to pay it off.

The National Fund has now grown to become one of the largest charities in the UK by net assets.

But unlike most charities, it takes in no donations and provides no handouts to needy causes.

Papers lodged with the Charities Commission in 2012 said: "The aim of the charity is to create a fund, that either on its own or combined with other funds, is sufficient to discharge the National Debt.

"The ultimate beneficiary of the National Fund is the National Debt Commissioners."

The papers say the fund increased in value by £12m in 2012 which all came from dividends on investments. Last year it spent £570,000 on managing the fund and £430,000 on other activities.

Barclays has been trying for four years to get permission to use the money to make charitable grants or to turn it over to the Treasury, but any change would have to be approved by a court.

A spokesman for Barclays said: "We've been working ever since we became the trustee to change the original objects, which say the funds can be used only to pay off the entire national debt.

"We are working with the Charity Commission and the attorney general's office to look at how best to take the fund forward."

This week it emerged Joan Edwards left £520K to the Government

A spokesman for the attorney general's office said: "There has been correspondence between the Charity Commission, the trustees and ourselves over the National Fund.

"We are looking at a number of options for the future of the Fund, consistent with its object of extinguishing or reducing the national debt.

"It would not be right to comment further whilst this process continues."

A spokeswoman for the Charity Commission said is it continuing dialogue with the trustee and the attorney general's office regarding the charity.

This week, the Tories and Liberal Democrats gave up a £520,000 bequest from former nurse Joan Edwards amid confusion over whether she actually meant the money to go to the state or to the political parties in power.

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Briton Drowns 'In Front Of Family' In Lanzarote

A British woman died swimming in the sea off Lanzarote while her husband and three children were on the beach, it has been reported.

The woman is understood to have got into difficulty off the shore of the Spanish holiday island, according to local newspapers.

The website for the publication Diario de Lanzarote said the woman, aged 49, drowned off Famara Beach, on the north side of the Island.

The website said the Emergency and Security Co-ordination Centre received a 112 call at 3.39pm on Thursday reporting that a woman had been brought out of the water with "signs of drowning".

The report said there were fears she could have suffered a heart attack.

Emergency services were sent to the scene and attempted to resuscitate the woman but she could not be revived.

According to eyewitnesses, she was on the beach with her husband and three children, the website said.

Responsibility for the death was handed over to court officials. The victim has yet to be named.

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokeswoman said:  "We are aware of the death of a British national in Lanzarote on 15 August. We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

If confirmed, the death would be the second involving a British national to occur on Famara Beach in a few months.

A map showing the location of Lanzarote, in the Spanish Canary Islands

In April, a British man died on the beach after getting into difficulties in the sea.

Steve Potter was spotted face down in the water after leaving friends on the beach to go for a swim.

The 43-year-old was dragged out of the water unconscious, according to reports, but he was pronounced dead after efforts to revive him failed.

Meanwhile, a body found in Lanzarote in May was confirmed as that of a British pensioner who went missing on the island in 2011.

Margaret Holt, 65, from the Wirral, Merseyside, was seen leaving her hotel in the resort of Costa Teguise, on the south side of the island, on the morning of December 23, 2011.

The experienced walker, who was feared to have fallen, was spotted later in the afternoon in the northerly Orzola region of the island - but then disappeared.

Mrs Holt, who was described as extremely fit, was reported missing after her worried family contacted the Spanish Civil Guard to raise the alarm when she failed to make contact with them over Christmas.

A search and rescue operation was launched by authorities on the island, but was stood down after 72 hours. Local expatriates and other residents organised their own searches for her.

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Google Outage: Internet Traffic Plunges 40%

Worldwide internet traffic plunged by around 40% as Google services suffered a complete black-out, according to web analytics experts.

The tech company said all of its services from Google Search to Gmail to YouTube to Google Drive went down for between one and five minutes last night.

The reason for the outage is not yet known, and Google refused to provide any further information when contacted by Sky News Online.

According to web analytics firm GoSquared, global internet traffic fell by around 40% during the black-out, reflecting Google's massive grip on the web.

"That's huge," said GoSquared developer Simon Tabor. "As internet users, our reliance on Google.com being up is huge.

"It's also of note that pageviews spiked shortly afterwards, as users managed to get to their destination."

A message on the Google Apps Dashboard showed all of its services were hit.

"We're aware of a problem with Gmail affecting a significant subset of users. The affected users are able to access Gmail, but are seeing error messages and/or other unexpected behaviour," it said.

A later message said: "Between 15:51 and 15:52 PDT, 50% to 70% of requests to Google received errors; service was mostly restored one minute later, and entirely restored after four minutes."

Red dots on the Google Apps Dashboard show all its services were hit

When contacted by Sky News, a spokesman for Google directed us to the dashboard message.

"We have no comment beyond this," he added.

Digital expert Phil Dearson, head of strategy for Tribal Worldwide, said the black-out had cost Google an estimated $500,000 (£330,000) just in the few minutes it was down.

"This is completely unprecedented, I've never heard of anything like this before," he told Sky News Online.

"One or two of Google's services have gone down in the past, like Gmail and Google Apps, but they both happened separately.

"It's a massive surprise for all of Google's services to go down at the same time.

"It's probably a physical infrastructure problem given the size of the outage, but it's hard to know at this stage."

Neil McAllister, a writer for website The Register, said: "Exactly how an operation like Google's can even go dark like that, all at once, is anybody's guess.

"Whatever details eventually do come to light, however, expect a lot of amazed - and nervous - talk around the water coolers in data centres everywhere next week."

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Peru: 'Armed Men Forced Women To Carry Drugs'

The lawyer for the young Irish woman arrested in Peru for allegedly trying to smuggle cocaine to Spain says she was threatened "by a gang of up to 14 men with guns".

Peter Madden said Michaela McCollum Connolly was "kidnapped", held at gunpoint and "forced by threat to obtain and carry drugs".

But, while the girls have continued to maintain they were forced to comply with the demands of a gang, police in Spain have expressed doubts over their story.

Talking about Ms Connolly, Mr Madden said: "She wasn't offered any money, she was threatened and held. She is now prepared and ready to give full details to the police."

He told reporters in the capital Lima that Melissa Reid, the Scottish woman detained with her, was similarly threatened by a gang of up to 14 armed men.

The airport in Lima where the two women were detained

Mr Madden also said he had arrived at the police facility to find that McCollum Connolly was about to be questioned with no local lawyer available.

"I asked them to postpone the questioning and after a lot of argument about that, they did agree to postpone the questioning until a lawyer arrived," he added.

The two Britons, both aged 20, disappeared while working on the Spanish island of Ibiza.

They claim they were robbed of their passports and phones and followed as they took separate flights to Peru.

Police there said they were carrying £1.5m worth of cocaine when they were arrested last week as they tried to board a flight to Spain.

Ms McCollum, from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, and Ms Reid, from Kirkintilloch in East Dunbartonshire, both insist they are innocent.

William Reid in Peru

Ms Reid's father, William, had an emotional reunion with his daughter at the Dirando police station in Lima on Friday.

According to the Daily Mail, Ms Reid told him: "They made me do it."

She said she was introduced to a British man on Ibiza who forced her to meet a gang of Colombian gangsters. They put a gun to her head and ordered her to fly to Peru.

She told her father: "I wanted to tell the air hostesses or anyone in the airports, but the men said they would know if we had spoken to anyone, that they were watching all the time.

"It was a choice between doing what I was told and getting it over and done with and hopefully getting back to Spain or trying to escape and being killed."

However, First Sergeant Alberto Arian Barilla, the head of the Ibiza police unit responsible for fighting organised crime, said he did not believe the two young women had acted under duress.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Saturday: "In my experience, I don't think these two girls were forced to do this because – particularly when you go to South America – you need to pass several controls."

Mr Reid had also told the Irish Independent he "of course" believes his daughter is innocent, adding she was in the "wrong place at the wrong time".

Police are waiting for a translator before officially questioning the two women, which is expected to happen in the next few days.

Mr Madden has warned that if the women are charged, the proceedings could be lengthy.

If charged, the two women would be transferred to the Santa Monica women's prison where foreigners are held.

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Diana's Death: Police Passed New Information

New information that alleges Princess Diana was murdered has been passed to Scotland Yard through military sources, according to the Metropolitan Police.

The information, thought to include the allegation that the Princess of Wales, Dodi al Fayed and their driver were killed by a member of the British military, will be assessed by officers from the Specialist Crime and Operations Command.

It was passed to the police by the parents-in-law of a former soldier, according to Sky sources.

Princess Diana and Dodi al Fayed leaving the Ritz Hotel on August 31, 1997

The deaths of the Princess Diana and Mr al Fayed in Paris in 1997 were investigated and examined during a 90-day inquest led by Lord Justice Scott Baker at the Royal Court of Justice in 2007.

On April 7, 2008, the jury concluded their verdict as "unlawful killing, grossly negligent driving of the following vehicles and of the Mercedes".

The Metropolitan Police added the assessment was not a re-investigation and does not come under Operation Paget - the inquiry led by Lord Stevens into conspiracy theories surrounding Princess Diana and Mr al Fayed's deaths.

The wreckage of the Mercedes the pair were travelling in when it crashed

After the inquest, the Metropolitan Police said it had spent £8m on services arising from it and the Operation Paget investigation from 2004 to 2006.

Former Met Police commissioner Lord Stevens published his report in December 2006, rejecting claims that Princess Diana and Mr al Fayed had been murdered.

Sky's Crime Correspondent Martin Brunt said: "We understand this information includes an allegation that Princess Diana and Dodi al Fayed and the driver of their car were killed by a member of the British military.

"The information we're told was passed to Scotland Yard quite recently through the Royal Military Police. It also includes, we understand, references to something known as Diana's diary.

"These are very early days, the information has just come in, and Scotland Yard is adamant in saying that this is not a reopening of its investigation from 2004 when it spent three years looking into the circumstances of the Princess' death.

"But it is taking the information seriously and it is considering and it is possible that a new investigation may open."

Diana, Mr al Fayed and their driver Henri Paul died after the Mercedes crashed in a Paris tunnel on August 31, 1997.

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Egypt Travel Warning To 40,000 British Tourists

Thousands of British holidaymakers are being told to stay in their hotels in Egypt because of the continuing violence across the country.

Holiday firms are continuing to run flights to popular Egyptian resorts despite the ongoing unrest in the country, although companies in Germany and France are avoiding the area.

Some of those arriving back from Cairo witnessed the violence, which has led to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to warn against all but essential travel to much of Egypt, except for the Red Sea resorts where it said enhanced security measures were in place to protect tourists.

British tourists in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada, where violent clashes led to the death of one person earlier this week, have been advised to remain in the grounds of their hotels.

Speaking to Sky News from her hotel, holidaymaker Sally Asling said that at the moment she felt safe.

She said: "The hotel is high security and the airport is high security. It is quicker for me to get back to London than drive to Cairo. You have to keep perspective on it.

"There was a demonstration a mile down the road two days ago. It is unsettling hearing how quickly things become volatile and kick off. It is safe, but how safe?"

The FCO guidance also warns of "a serious risk of violence and sexual assault at demonstrations", but the advice stops short of that issued by the French and German governments, which have told nationals not to travel to Egypt.

Sharm el Sheikh and the Red Sea resorts are still considered safe

One British woman returning from Cairo at Manchester Airport told Sky News: "It was frightening, just because we were unable to go outside ... we stayed indoors most of the time with family, but we weren't able to go into the streets or anything like that.

"We travelled to Hurghada on bus and then we came back to Cairo and the bus had to turn around on a bridge because there was a fire at the other end."

UK travel organisation Abta estimates there are around 40,000 Britons in Egypt at the moment.

Tour operators Thomson and First Choice have 11,769 British holidaymakers in the country, many of them in Sharm el Sheikh.

A spokeswoman for the two companies said: "We are working with the FCO and monitoring the situation closely in Egypt.

"The majority of our customers are in Sharm el Sheikh which is a considerable distance - indeed, an eight-hour drive - from Cairo.

"There have been no related incidents in Sharm el Sheikh or any of the other popular Red Sea tourist areas."

Thomson and First Choice operate to four Egyptian resorts - Sharm el Sheikh, Hurghada, Taba and Marsa Alam.

Thomson Airways had three return flights to Sharm el Sheikh on Friday and two to Hurghada. On Saturday, it has four return flights to Sharm el Sheikh, and five return flights to on Sunday.

In light of the FCO travel advice, Thomson Cruises has changed its itinerary for an Egypt & the Holy Land voyage on the Thomson Celebration vessel starting next Monday.

Luxury holiday company Kuoni has cancelled all its Egypt excursions for the next 30 days over the security concerns.

The company said it was now contacting clients with bookings to restricted areas of Egypt within the next 21 days to offer them alternative holiday destinations.

Thomas Cook also has several thousand UK tourists in Red Sea resorts and is continuing to operate flights to the area, but has cancelled excursions to Cairo, Luxor, Moses Mountain and St Catherine's Monastery.

The FCO advice reads: "If you are already in a part of Egypt where the FCO advise against all but essential travel, you should consider whether you have a pressing need to remain.

"If you decide to remain in Egypt, you should stay at or close to home or a place of safety (eg your hotel), keep a low profile and pay close attention to your personal safety, particularly in the larger cities. You should avoid crowds.

You should follow the regulations set by the local authorities and obey curfews. Make sure you keep valid photographic identification with you at all times."

It adds: "You are strongly advised to avoid all demonstrations and large gatherings. If you become aware of any nearby protests, leave the area immediately. Don't attempt to cross road blocks erected by the security forces or protestors.

"There is a serious risk of violence and sexual assault at demonstrations. NGOs report more than 100 rapes and sexual assaults against women in demonstrations since 30 June. Foreign and Egyptian women have been attacked."

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Fracking Protests Have Cost Police £750,000

The cost of policing the increasing number of protesters at a test drilling site in West Sussex has reached nearly £750,000.

Sussex Police revealed the sum while officers from 10 other forces were drafted in to help with policing the protest, which began last month.

Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne said the force would now ask for help from the Government in meeting the growing bill.

"While Sussex Police continues to facilitate peaceful protest at the site in an appropriate and proportionate manner, the recent involvement of national groups suggests the demonstrations will continue long term," she said.

"This is leading to increased demand on police resources and is placing pressure on the police budget at a time when we are being asked to find significant savings.

"I am determined that this will not affect policing across the rest of Sussex and that the Chief Constable will have all the resources necessary to continue to keep Sussex safe."

More than 1,000 new protesters turned up yesterday at the site as part of a six-day protest camp on the outskirts of the village of Balcombe.

They included the fashion designer Vivienne Westwood who called for a public debate on the issue.

The protesters have set up two camps a mile apart

She told Sky News that Prime Minister David Cameron's stance supporting fracking was outrageous: "It's just storing up for the future, near future even, with financial problems and ultimately, you know, we'll all fry.

"You know the ice caps are melting, the Earth is going to change dramatically and I don't know where he's (David Cameron) coming from - what is this race?"

Balcombe has become the focal point of fracking protests since energy firm Cuadrilla prepared to drill for oil at the site.

Campaigners fear the test drilling could lead to hydraulic fracturing, also known as fracking, but Cuadrilla has said it is unlikely to turn the site into a fossil fuel production area.

Conservationists have also lodged their objection to the planned scheme, warning that fracking close to an important, protected wildlife site for pink footed geese and whooper swans could disturb the birds.

In a letter to Lancashire County Council, the RSPB also raised concerns that increasing gas and oil use would undermine efforts to tackle climate change.

Protesters have now set up two camps a mile apart and some have said they intend to take "direct action" against the drilling site.

But some Balcombe residents have reacted angrily to the arrival of the anti-fracking protesters en masse, saying they are not representative of all villagers.

Derek Earl, 71, said: "I'm in the middle on the fracking debate, neither for nor against, but what I'm fed up with is the anti-frackers' behaviour.

"This lot have tunnel vision and they won't listen to anyone else's view. What is annoying is when they say that the overwhelming majority of the village supports them. They don't."

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Egypt: Gunfire Exchanged At Besieged Mosque

A gun battle has erupted between soldiers and Muslim Brotherhood protesters holed up in a mosque in central Cairo.

Egyptian TV footage showed gunmen firing from inside the minaret of the al Fath mosque in Ramses Square - moments after images emerged of tear gas canisters being thrown at protesters inside the building.

Witnesses said tear gas was fired into the mosque prayer room to flush out protesters, who refused to leave the premises.

Pictures also showed soldiers dragging the supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi out of the building as they dismantled a makeshift barricade and stormed the building to clear it.

Soldiers fired back after gunfire appeared to come from the minaret

The fresh violence flared after hours of negotiations between the two sides - and news that Egyptian Prime Minister Hazem el Beblawi had proposed disbanding the Muslim Brotherhood and that the idea was being considered by the government.

It also emerged that Mohamed al Zawahri - brother of al Qaeda chief Ayman al Zawahri - had been arrested in Egypt for supporting Mr Morsi.

An Egyptian presidential spokesman said the country was facing "war by the forces of extremism" and vowed to "confront terrorism through security measures".

Hundreds of Muslim Brotherhood supporters had barricaded themselves inside the mosque overnight, which was turned into a makeshift field hospital for the wounded and a morgue for some of those killed in the protests.

Protesters don masks as tear gas canister are thrown into the building

Four Irish citizens - children of Hussein Halawa, the Imam of Ireland's biggest mosque in Dublin - on a family holiday to Egypt with their mother, were among those in the building.

Omaima Halawa, 21, who was with her two sisters Somaia, 27, and Fatima, 23, and brother Ibrihim, 17, earlier described the scene as frightening, and said a group of women had been escorted out of the building.

Tensions remained high as a pro-military crowd - and supporters of the deposed Mr Morsi - assembled in front of the building.

The Muslim Brotherhood's London-based spokeswoman Mona al Qazzaz claimed on Sky News that the security forces were responsible for the minaret gunfire - using it as a cover to storm the mosque and remove protesters.

With the Brotherhood vowing to press on with daily protests, more widespread violence is expected across Egypt.

A woman being escorted out of the mosque

Speaking to Sky News from Cairo, journalist Jared Malsin, said: "Most people are bracing for another wave of demonstrations, as soon as later today.

"The willingness of the security forces to use deadly force over the last several days, and the willingness of the Muslim Brotherhood to continue mobilising in the face of that deadly force show I think that we are going to see more of the same in the coming days and weeks."

He said he believed the country was "more deeply polarised than ever" and that he had witnessed "citizen-organised, vigilante squads" cropping up in individual neighbourhoods in Cairo.

"In some neighbourhoods they are pro-military, like the one that I ran into yesterday. These are people who are arming themselves with sticks and knives to keep out Muslim Brotherhood people. That in a sense is a worrying development."

State TV ran an English 'Egypt fights terrorism' caption as the PM spoke

Mahmoud Badr, the youth leader whose petition campaign helped oust Mr Morsi, said the bloodshed was a price worth paying to rid Egypt of Muslim Brother hood rule.

"What Egypt is passing through now is the price, a high price, of getting rid of the Brotherhood's fascist group before it takes over everything and ousts us all," Badr, 28, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

In London, demonstrators held a protest against the violence outside the Egyptian embassy.

An explosion damaged the front of the Egyptian consulate in Benghazi, Libya, but no injuries were reported.

More than 1,000 protesters were arrested by police across the country during a "day of rage" on Friday, of which 558 were held in Cairo.

A pro-government crowd tried to attack the Muslim Brotherhood supporters

The arrests came after tens of thousands of Brotherhood supporters clashed with armed vigilantes and security forces in the fiercest street battles to engulf the country since the country's Arab Spring uprising.

Tear gas could be seen during flashpoints in parts of Cairo, with protesters apparently hurling bottles and rocks at security forces.

On what the Brotherhood called the "march of rage" in response to the deaths of 638 people on Wednesday when security forces raided two sit-in protests, officials said at least 173 people, including 10 police officers, were killed.

Ammar Badie, one of the sons of the Muslim Brotherhood's spiritual leader Mohamed Badie, was among those killed, the group's Freedom and Justice Party said on its Facebook page.

The 38-year-old died of a gunshot wound while taking part in protests in Ramses Square.

The whereabouts of his father, who has been charged with inciting violence, are unknown.

It is the worst violence the country has seen since the 2011 uprising and ousting of former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, under whose rule the Muslim Brotherhood was outlawed as a political organisation.

His trial on charges of complicity in the deaths of protesters has been adjourned until August 25.

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