Clashes between supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi and security forces flared up in five provinces despite a curfew imposed by the authorities to curb violence.
In the canal city of Ismailia, skirmishes between Morsi supporters and police forces were raging near a court complex near the governor's headquarters.
At least 18 people – 11 protesters and 7 troops - were killed in the violence, Ibrahim al-Desouki, head of the city's ambulance service, said.
In the adjacent province of Suez, military vehicles pursued a group of unidentified gunmen in Al-Teraa Square.
Military patrols are roaming the city's streets, checking passers-by who violated the curfew.
Army forces said Morsi's supporters fired two mortars at a local police station in the Upper Egyptian province of Assiut in an apparent bid to storm it. The attack caused damage to the station's building.
Military vehicles were heading to the scene to back the forces currently exchanging heavy fire with the attackers.
Also in the south, protesters set fire to a local church, causing damage to the building.
In Fayoum, south of Cairo, vigilante committees backed by security forces reportedly thwarted an attempt by Morsi supporters to attack a local police station.
The Egyptian government declared an eleven-hour curfew in 14 provinces for a one-month period starting Wednesday.
Spokesman Sherif Shawqi said the curfew – from 7pm to 6am – would apply to the provinces of Cairo, Giza, Alexandria, Beni Sueif, Minya, Assiut, Sohag, North Sinai, South Sinai, Suez, Ismailia and Beheira.
The move came few hours after security forces forcibly dispersed two major sit-ins staged by supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi in Cairo and Giza.
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