Protest Deaths: Egyptian Military Apologises

Egypt's military rulers have apologised for the deaths of dozens of pro-democracy protesters and vowed to prosecute those responsible.
It is the latest attempt to appease the tens of thousands who have taken to the streets demanding that the generals immediately step down.
Police and protesters have also agreed to a truce negotiated by Muslim clerics after five days of fierce street battles that have left nearly 40 dead.
But the military's apology has left many of the protesters unmoved.
"What we want to hear is when they're leaving," said Khaled Mahmoud, a protester who had a bandage on his nose after being hit by a tear gas canister.
The streets where the battles took place were almost entirely covered by debris, soot, abandoned shoes and scores of the surgical masks used by the protesters to fend off the police's tear gas.
International criticism of Egypt's military rulers has been steadily growing and a rights group has put the number of dead in the wave of violence at 38.
The United Nations has strongly condemned authorities for what it deems an excessive use of force.
Germany, one of Egypt's top trading partners, has called for a quick transfer of power to a civilian government.
The US and the UN secretary general have already expressed their concern over the use of violence against mostly peaceful protesters.
Navi Pillay, the UN high commissioner for human rights, has deplored the role of Egypt's security forces in attempting to suppress protesters.
"Some of the images coming out of Tahrir, including the brutal beating of already subdued protesters, are deeply shocking, as are the reports of unarmed protesters being shot in the head," Ms Pillay said.
"There should be a prompt, impartial and independent investigation, and accountability for those found responsible for the abuses that have taken place should be ensured."
Clashes resumed for a fifth day on Wednesday despite a promise by the head of the ruling military council on Tuesday to speed up a presidential election to the first half of next year, a concession swiftly rejected by tens of thousands of protesters in Tahrir Square.
The military previously floated late next year or early 2013 as a likely date for the vote, the last step in the process of transferring power to a civilian government.
The clashes are the longest spate of uninterrupted violence since the 18-day uprising that toppled the former regime in February.
The stand-off at Tahrir and in other major cities, such as Alexandria and Assiut, has deepened the country's economic and security crisis less than a week before the first parliamentary elections since authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak was ousted.
Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi tried to defuse tensions with an address on Tuesday but he did not set a date for handing over authority to a civilian government.
Protesters want Tantawi to step down immediately in favour of an interim civilian administration to run the nation's affairs until a new parliament and president are elected.
The government offered more concessions on Wednesday, ordering the release of 312 protesters detained over the past days.
And it instructed civilian prosecutors to take over a probe the military started into the death of 27 people, mostly Christians, in a protest on October 9. The army is accused of involvement in the killings.