Egypt's ousted president Hosni Mubarak was flown from prison by helicopter to a military hospital Thursday after he was cleared for conditional release while standing trial, an interior ministry general told Agence France Presse.

Mubarak will be held under house arrest at the Cairo hospital on the orders of the prime minister, who has been granted the power to order arrests during the current state of emergency.

Egyptian authorities must protect churches and Christian homes and businesses from attack and Islamists must stop inciting sectarian violence, Human Rights Watch said on Thursday.

The group said it had documented attacks on 42 churches and dozens of Christian institutions, schools and homes, as well as Christian-owned businesses across the country.

The European Union agreed Wednesday to restrict exports of security equipment and arms to Egypt in response to the mounting violence but opted to maintain economic assistance.

EU foreign ministers roundly condemned the bloodshed after four hours of emergency talks called in the middle of Europe's summer break after the deaths of almost 1,000 people in a week of unrelenting violence.

An Egyptian court Wednesday ordered ex-president Hosni Mubarak freed while he stands trial for corruption and killing protesters, as authorities pressed their roundup of supporters of his ousted Islamist successor.

Egypt's military, however, ordered Mubarak to be placed under house arrest, the government said.

At least 15 people were killed Wednesday north of the Egyptian capital when an ex-convict went on a shooting spree, apparently over a family dispute, state media and judicial sources said.

Egypt's official news agency MENA said "15 people were killed when a dangerous criminal... opened fire randomly at passers-by."

Egyptian forces overnight arrested two more Muslim Brotherhood officials, a top preacher and a spokesman for the group, military and security sources told Agence France Presse on Wednesday.

Preacher Safwat Hegazy was arrested close to Egypt's border with Libya in the west of the country, a military source said.

Saudi Arabia on Wednesday urged world support for the bid by Egypt's interim government to achieve "stability" in the country, and not to hamper its efforts.

"We expect the international community to support the efforts of Egypt's government in its bid to achieve what we all aspire for -- security, stability, and prosperity," Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal told Agence France Presse.

Bloodbath in Egypt, civil war in Syria, stalemate in Tunisia: the Arab Spring has stoked turmoil because of a lack of maturity among the region's new political class, analysts say.

When popular uprisings swept away long-standing dictators in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia in 2011, hopes were running high for a smooth transition and a fresh start.

Egypt's former president Hosni Mubarak will face a new court hearing on Wednesday during which his lawyer will seek his release from prison, judicial sources said.

The hearing is the fourth and final case against the long-time president, who was toppled in a popular uprising in February 2011.

Egypt's interim Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi said in an interview Tuesday it would be a mistake if the United States cut off military aid but insisted Cairo could survive without it.

A possible move by Washington to stop U.S. weapons deliveries and other assistance to Egypt "will be a bad sign and will badly affect the military for some time," Beblawi told ABC News.