Cairo: Egypt's Health Ministry says overnight clashes between police and residents of a densely populated district just north of Cairo have left four people dead.
Security officials say the clashes began when a bystander in Shubra al-Kheima was hit by a stray bullet fired by police chasing an alleged drug dealer. They began last night and continued till Sunday.
The ministry said in a statement that the 12 wounded included two officers and a police conscript.
Clashes between police and civilians have been common since the ouster of autocratic leader Hosni Mubarak in an uprising nearly two years ago.
Police brutality was one of the major causes of the 2011 uprising.
The officials spoke anonymously as they were not authorised to talk to the press.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, January 20, 2013, 22:09