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Demonstrators furious that Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister made it into the run-off for the country's presidential election set ablaze his campaign headquarters on Monday, underscoring the divisive outcome of the nation's historic vote. The campaign offices of Ahmed Shafiq, viewed as a symbol of Mubarak's rule, were set on fire after a group of protesters broke into and vandalized the premises, the state news agency reported. An official in the fire service confirmed the blaze had been extinguished without causing any casualties. Several thousand protesters took to the streets across Egypt to demonstrate against the first-round result - a run-off between Shafiq and the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Mursi, two of the most controversial figures in the field. Troubled flared in Cairo's Tahrir Square when activists said unknown assailants attacked one such protest. Rocks were thrown in scenes reminiscent of other spasms of violence in a messy transitio...

Egyptian troops have blasted protesters with water cannons, tear gas and live ammunition, trying to prevent them from marching on the Defense Ministry in clashes that left one soldier dead and scores of people injured just three weeks ahead of presidential elections. The fierce street battles on Friday raised fears of a new cycle of violence surrounding the upcoming vote to replace Hosni Mubarak, who was ousted more than a year ago. For the first time in Egypt's chaotic transition, hard-line Islamists, rather than secular forces, were at the forefront of the confrontation with the military rulers who have been accused of trying to cling to power. The military council imposed an 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew on the area surrounding the Defense Ministry, which has emerged as a flashpoint for the protesters' anger after nine people were killed on Wednesday in clashes between unidentified assailants and protesters who mainly comprised supporters of a disqualified Islamist presi...