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Middle East and North Africa

United Nations Security Council gathers for emergency meeting on Egypt

The Security Council will meet behind the closed doors

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

Photo EPA/ITAR-TASS

UNITED NATIONS, August 16 (Itar-Tass) - The United Nations Security Council has gathered for an emergency meeting on Egypt where the authorities imposed a curfew because of mass riots.

The Security Council will meet behind the closed doors. U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson will brief the Council’s members on the recent events in Egypt. The meeting had been convened at the request of Australia, Britain and France.

The diplomats did not clarify whether the U.N. Security Council would take any steps after the meeting. The Russian and U.S. ambassadors refrained from any comments.

According to the Egyptian Health Ministry, more than 600 people were killed and over 4,000 were injured in clashes last Wednesday. The Egyptian authorities imposed a curfew in 14 provinces.

The U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki - moon has criticized the fresh outbreak of violence noting that it was not a response to the challenges which Egypt was facing.

There has been no reaction of the United Nations Security Council to the riots in Egypt as of yet.

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