UNRELENTING supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi made their presence felt in central Cairo
on Friday (July 19), with tens of thousands marching through the capital to call for his reinstatement.
Protesters waved Egyptian flags and held up pictures of Mursi, who was removed from office by the military on July 3 following mass protests against him.
More than two weeks after Egypt’s powerful military shunted Mursi from office, there was still no sign of a possible deal to defuse the crisis, which has divided the most populous Arab state and alarmed its Western allies.
The Muslim Brotherhood has called for demonstrations around the country on Friday, accusing the head of the armed forces, General Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, of staging a coup to sweep Egypt’s first freely elected president from power.
One Mursi supporter said that he had cast his vote for Mursi, and that the army was now undermining democracy.
“I’ve come out to support legitimacy. Not because of President Mursi, but to support legitimacy. They stole the vote that I cast in the elections. I want to ask al-Sisi [head of the armed forces], where is my vote? Where did my vote go Sisi? And why did you put this guy [Mursi] in jail when he didn’t do anything?” he said.
Mursi has been held in an undisclosed location since his ouster, and violence between his supporters and the security forces has claimed over a hundred lives.
Dozens of Mursi’s supporters were killed by the army on July 8 when they staged a protest outside of the barracks where they assumed he was being held.
An interim government has now been sworn in and the army and political parties have supported a transition plan that includes early elections and the writing of a new constitution to replace a controversial one written under Mursi.
One of the ousted President’s supporters said Mursi had been betrayed.
“This march is to support the legitimate president, Mohamed Mursi, against the traitor, al-Sisi [the head of the armed forces] who betrayed Mursi. And without any right he wants to give the state over to the American-Zionist agent al-Baradei. This is something we can never let happen,” he said.
Mursi’s supporters have said that he was ousted by a military coup and must immediately be reinstated. His opponents say the army acted to carry out the popular will after millions marched against him as the country descended into chaos.
As thousands march in pro and anti-Mursi rallies planned for Friday in Cairo, the Egyptian airforce’s helicopters and fighter jets flew overhead.
Five helicopters carrying large Egyptian flags flew over Tahrir Square. They were followed by apache helicopters and a fast moving F-16 fighter jet.