At least 525 were killed Wednesday when the police forcibly cleared protest camps set up by supporters of toppled Islamist president Mohamed Morsi, a health ministry official said Thursday.

Some 3717 others were wounded in the crackdown and ensuing clashes across Egypt, according to health ministry spokesman Mohamed Fathallah.

Egypt's interior ministry told reporters Wednesday night that 43 security personnel had lost their lives in the day's clashes.

Violent unrest convulsing the country has led the interim government to declare a month-long state of emergency, with a daily curfew between 7:00pm and 6:00am in Cairo and 13 other governorates.