Supporters of Mohamed Morsi react after hearing that the army
have decided to overthrow Morsi [Reuters]
have decided to overthrow Morsi [Reuters]
Cairo - The fireworks celebrating
Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi’s removal by the military are visible a
few kilometres away, where thousands of his supporters are holding a
sit-in, a protest they plan to continue until Morsi is reinstated.
Hours after his removal, the mood at the rally, outside a mosque in Cairo’s Nasr City neighbourhood, was sombre and confused.
Supporters of Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood wondered how the man
who last year became Egypt’s first democratically-elected president
could be ousted so ignominiously.
Fear hovered over the rally, too, with many Brotherhood members
wondering if Morsi’s removal would portend a wider crackdown on the
once-banned group.
The army has encircled the site of the protest, blocking main roads
with barbed wire and armoured vehicles; helicopters buzz overhead, often
to jeers and curses from below. One man spat at a helicopter,
dismissing its pilots as traitors.
