At least 20 killed as attackers Target Cairo Protest

At least 20 people have been killed in Cairo in an attack on a protest near the Egyptian Ministry of Defence.

The unknown attackers used rocks, clubs, firebombs and shotguns. The protesters retaliated, beating some assailants.

Soldiers and police have now intervened to stop the clashes, but as long as six hours after the violence started.

Two leading presidential candidates have suspended campaigning in protest at the way authorities handled it.

Abdul Moneim Aboul Fotouh, an independent Islamist, and Mohammed Mursi, head of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), criticised the authorities' response.

In addition, the FJP and the Salafist Nour party, which together control 70% of the seats in parliament, decided to boycott a meeting with the ruling Supreme Council of Armed Forces (Scaf).

I saw several people with head injuries and two people died in front of me. There was a lot of blood everywhere”

Many of the protesters who were attacked outside the defence ministry building, in the capital's Abbasiya district, on Wednesday morning were supporters of a Salafist preacher barred from standing in the election.

Hazem Abu Ismail was disqualified because his mother had dual Egyptian-US nationality, violating rules laid out in a constitutional declaration approved after an uprising forced President Hosni Mubarak to step down.

Mr Abu Ismail complained that he was the victim of a "plot" by the military authorities, but the election commission found no evidence.

Ahmed Raafat was at the demonstration with friends and witnessed the attacks which he described to the BBC as a "massacre".