Clashes between Egyptian protesters and baton-wielding military forces continued in Cairo Monday bringing the four-day death toll to at least 14 in the country's latest round of violence. Soldiers in riot gear used tear gas, water cannons and their batons against protesters who gathered in Cairo's Tahrir Square and near the cabinet building to demand the immediate handover of power from the military's interim government to a civilian authority. Violence erupted early Friday after images emerged of a badly beaten activist. Protesters took to the streets with stones and the military cracked down, escalating fears that the country's first round of elections since the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak in February, will be tainted. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the military's response to protests and called for "the transitional authorities to act with restraint and uphold human rights, including the right to peaceful protest," Al-Jazeera quoted his office as saying. Hillary Clinton echoed that thought and urged forces to "respect and protect the universal rights of all Egyptians."
