CAIRO (AP) — Egypt put its police force on a state of alert after a night of violence during which angry protesters broke into the Israeli Embassy in Cairo, tearing down a cement barrier around the building and dumping documents out of the windows.
The rampage further worsened already deteriorating ties between Israel and post-Hosni Mubarak Egypt. The Israeli ambassador and his family had rushed to the airport and left the country.
The state MENA news agency says 448 people were injured in overnight clashes between thousands of protesters and police, who fired tear gas to disperse the crowd. Forty-six policemen were also hurt and 17 protesters were arrested.
Egypt’s state TV says the interior ministry on Saturday ordered all officers back on duty and canceled vacations.
