Egypt calls month-long state of emergency

The violence came after security forces moved against supporters of the ousted President Mohammed Morsi.

The EU said it is deeply concerned about the escalation in violence.

Turkey has attacked the Egyptian government for its violent move with Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan calling the crackdown “a serious blow to the hopes of a return to democracy”.

He blamed other unnamed countries for encouraging the government after Mr Morsi’s removal in a military coup on July 3.

Turkish president Abdullah Gul also warned that Egypt could descend into chaos and compared the development to Syria where a crackdown on civilians led to a civil war.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned "in the strongest terms'' the violence used by Egyptian security forces..

A UN spokesman said Mr Ban regrets that Egyptian authorities chose to use force to respond to the demonstrations instead of listening to his earlier plea to prevent further loss of life.

“In the aftermath of today’s violence, the secretary-general urges all Egyptians to concentrate their efforts on promoting genuinely inclusive reconciliation,” the spokesman said.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the government was ``extremely worried'' about the ``very dangerous'' escalation of violence in Egypt, indirectly criticising the leadership for its crackdown at the same time urging an end to violence.

“We expect from the transitional government and the Egyptian authorities that they allow peaceful demonstrations just as we expect from the other political forces that they distance themselves clearly from violence, that they don’t demand violence and don’t act violently.”

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman said the “decisive principle” must be “that the human rights of all Egyptians, independent of their political direction and conviction, have to be respected and protected.”

Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood has urged its Egyptian peers to continue protests, saying their victory will help the fundamentalist group rise to power elsewhere in the Arab world.

A statement by the Brotherhood’s political arm, the Islamic Action Front, also warns Egypt’s military rulers that they have fallen into a “conspiracy” hatched by the United States and Israel to weaken Muslims.

Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino appealed to all sides in Egypt to do what they can to immediately stop the explosion of violence and “avoid a bloodbath.”

Ms Bonino expressed deep sorrow for the loss of human lives.

“I had expressed the hope that the squares with the sit-ins be emptied” through an agreement among all sides, and “not with the intervention of police forces, which doesn’t help the search for a solution to the political crisis,” she said.

She added that it was essential that security forces “exercise maximum self-control; likewise, everyone must avoid every incitement to violence.”