( CNN ) -- At least 23 people died Saturday when a protest rally turned violent outside Madagascar 's Presidential Palace , a fire official at the main hospital said . People duck to avoid gunfire Saturday in Antananarivo , the capital of Madagascar . The official said 83 people were injured during the demonstration in the capital city of Antananarivo , according to journalist Dregoire Pourtier , who passed the information to CNN . The International Committee of the Red Cross helped at least 18 injured people , press officer Mbola Ramamanana said . Brittany Martin , an American who is a Harvard Fellow and lives near the palace , said she could hear the crowd cheering amid intermittent gunshots and noises that may have been tear gas canisters . iReport.com : Are you there ? `` From the window I can see military cars and ambulances driving by , '' Martin said . `` Nothing is up in smoke . We know there have been people killed from French and Malagasy news reports . `` We can see the back of the president 's palace . This morning was totally peaceful . We knew that Andry [ Rajoelina ] was unveiling his new government at the May 13th Plaza , which was peaceful , '' she said , citing a friend who was there . Madagascar 's government is in flux . President Marc Ravalomanana fired Rajoelina as mayor of Antananarivo and put someone else in the job , but Rajoelina is still technically mayor and claims to head a transitional national government . Martin said she heard gunshots starting about 2 p.m. , after the protesters marched from the plaza to the palace . She said it was unclear where the shots were coming from . Some media reports blamed foreign mercenaries for the shootings ; others said army guards were responsible or that the army was firing at the mercenaries to protect the crowd . Violence in Madagascar began January 26 , when protesters stormed state-run television and radio stations in Antananarivo . Hours earlier , the government had shut down a radio station owned by Rajoelina and , weeks before , had similarly shut down Rajoelina 's television station after it aired an interview with ex-President Didier Ratsiraka . Ravalomanana took power in 2001 after ousting Ratsiraka in a tense , hotly contested election . Ratsiraka fled to France afterward . Loyalists blame Ratsiraka 's family members for inciting the recent trouble . There is also anger in Madagascar -- where the World Bank says the average person earns about $ 320 a year -- over reports that Ravalomanana recently bought a $ 60 million airplane . Last Saturday , Rajoelina took to the streets , declaring himself the nation 's leader after a week of violence and looting that killed at least 80 people and wounded more than 300 . Rajoelina urged supporters to demand the resignation of Ravalomanana and said he planned to take charge until a transition government can be established in the island nation off Africa 's southeastern coast . Map » . `` What we 've been pushing for is dialogue the whole time , '' said Rodney Ford , a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy . He said he received reports that palace guards used tear gas and shot into the air to try to disperse the crowd . `` I do n't think anyone wanted violence . '' According to the U.S. State Department , Madagascar has about 20 million people with ethnic origins in Africa and Asia . It was administered by the British Empire during much of the 19th century until it came under the control of France , from which it gained independence in 1960 .
Gunfire heard near presidential palace , site of anti-government rally . President and fired mayor of capital city are locked in a power struggle . Rally started peacefully , American in capital says .