Thursday 4 July 2013

BREAKING: Military Coup in Egypt

Egypt coup ditches Morsi
Egypt's military has overthrown the country's embattled president, Mohammed Morsi, and called early elections.


4 July, 2013

Morsi has been replaced by the chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court, Adli Mansour, while the army has also suspended the Islamist-backed constitution.

Army chief Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, in a televised address to the nation early today (NZ time), said a government of technocrats will be appointed to run the country during a transition period he did not specify.

Military and judicial sources have said Mansour will be sworn in as interim head of state tonight (NZ time).

An aide of ousted President Mohammed Morsi, Ayman Ali, said the former leader has been moved to an undisclosed location. He gave no details.

A statement on the Egyptian president's office's Twitter account has quoted Morsi as calling military measures "a full coup."

The denouncement was posted shortly after the Egyptian military announced it was ousting Morsi, who was Egypt's first freely elected leader but drew ire with his Islamist leanings.

Morsi was quoted as saying those measures "represent a full coup categorically rejected by all the free men of our nation."

After the televised announcement by the army chief, millions of anti-Morsi protesters in cities around the country erupted in delirious scenes of joy, with shouts of "God is great" and "Long live Egypt."

Fireworks burst over crowds dancing and waving flags in Cairo's Tahrir Square, epicentre of the 2011 uprising that ousted autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Now it was one of multiple centres of a stunning four-day anti-Morsi revolt that brought out the biggest anti-government rallies Egypt has seen, topping even those of 2011.

Egypt's second-biggest Islamist party added this morning (NZ time) it had agreed to an army political "road map" that suspends the constitution so that the country can avoid conflict.

"We took this position and we took these decisions only so we stop the bloodshed of our people," Galal Murra, Nour's secretary general, said in a televised broadcast.

However, Morsi supporters in Cairo were heard shouting "No to military rule."

In another development, the television station of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood has been taken off air and its managers arrested.

The Egypt25 channel had been broadcasting live coverage of rallies by tens of thousands of pro-Mursi demonstrators in Cairo and around the country, with speeches by leading Brotherhood politicians denouncing the military intervention to oust the elected president.

Meanwhile, two US officials say that Egyptian defence leaders have assured the US that they are not interested in a long-term rule.

The official says the leaders, in calls with US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel and General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, pledged to put a civilian government in place quickly.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak on the record about the matter.

Non-essential US diplomats and the families of all American Embassy personnel have been ordered to leave Egypt by the US State Department.

An official, speaking on condition of anonymity because the official wasn't authorised to discuss it publicly, said the State Department had placed the US Embassy in Cairo on "ordered departure" status for non-emergency staff and dependents all employees. That means that those covered by the order are required to leave the country. It was not immediately clear if an evacuation operation would be mounted or if those departing would use commercial airlines or passenger ships to leave.

The Arab world's most populous nation has been in turmoil since the fall of Mubarak as Arab Spring uprisings took hold in early 2011, arousing concern among allies in the West and in Israel, with which Egypt has a 1979 peace treaty.

The elected Muslim Brotherhood president, in office for just a year, remained out of sight in a Republican Guard barracks surrounded by barbed wire, barriers and troops, but military sources denied media reports that he was under arrest.

"For the sake of Egypt and for historical accuracy, let's call what is happening by its real name: military coup," Morsi's national security adviser Essam El-Haddad said in a statement, warning of "considerable bloodshed" to come.

Another presidential aide, Yasser Haddara, said it was unclear whether Morsi was free to return to the palace where he spent the previous night. His message to supporters was to resist the "military coup" peacefully and not use violence against troops, police or other Egyptians.

Military chiefs, vowing to restore order in a country racked by protests over Morsi's Islamist policies, earlier issued a call to battle in a statement headlined "The Final Hours". They said they were willing to shed blood against "terrorists and fools" after Morsi refused to give up his elected office.

Military chiefs also said the entire senior leadership of his Muslim Brotherhood were banned from leaving the country.

Security sources told Reuters the authorities had sent a list of at least 40 leading members of the Brotherhood to airport police.

As the ultimatum expired, hundreds of thousands of anti-Morsi protesters in Tahrir Square in central Cairo let off fireworks, cheered and waved Egyptian flags in celebration.

US oil prices rose to a 14-month high above US$100 a barrel partly on fears that unrest in Egypt could destabilise the Middle East and lead to supply disruption.

The massive protests showed that the Brotherhood had not only alienated liberals and secularists by seeking to entrench Islamic rule, notably in a new constitution, but had also angered millions of Egyptians with economic mismanagement.

Tourism and investment have dried up, inflation is rampant and fuel supplies are running short, with power cuts lengthening in the summer heat and motorists spending hours fuelling cars.


From al-Jazeera






Since the ouster of Mubarak al-Jazeera has lost all credibility as an 'objective' news source by supporting the Jihadists in Syria and the Muslim Brotherhood. It has taken a consistent anti-Iranian and anti-Russian stance and stands with western outlets like CNN etc.

Al Jazeera, other TV stations forced off air in Egypt


RT,
4 July, 2013

Al Jazeera’s Egyptian broadcast has been taken off the air. Both Reuters and Al Jazeera itself reported that security forces raided Cairo offices and detained at least five staff members.


Karim El-Assiuti has told Reuters his colleagues at the Al Jazeera Mubasher Misr channel were arrested while working at their studio. The station was prevented from broadcasting from a pro-Morsi rally, and a broadcasting crew was detained. 

Ayman Mohyeldin, a Foreign Correspondent for NBC News, reported via Twitter that security personnel entered the broadcaster's offices overlooking Tahrir square looking for Al Jazeera journalists. 





Just had a group of men come to our office overlooking #Tahrir looking for Al Jazeera journalists @NBCNews @AJArabic @AJEnglish @SherineT

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The Qatari-owned Egyptian arm for Al Jazeera first began broadcasting following the 2011 toppling of former president Hosni Mubarak. It has since then been accused by Egypt’s opposition of being sympathetic to Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood. 

Al Jazeera's live Egypt broadcast was on air as the country’s security forces stormed the office arresting the presenter, guests and producers while they were off camera, as can be heard in the audio of the YouTube clip below:





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRj2cw5Q7L4&feature=player_embedded


From earlier-

Egypt’s ‘full military coup:’ How it happened

An Egyptian army helicopter flies over protesters calling for the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi in Cairo's landmark Tahrir Square on July 3, 2013 (AFP Photo / Gianluigi Guercia)


RT,
3 July, 2013

A military coup is underway in Egypt, according to Mohamed Morsi's national security adviser and a Muslim Brotherhood spokesperson. Security forces have placed a travel ban on Morsi and a number of top Brotherhood officials, according to AFP sources.

Watch RT's LIVE FEED from Cairo and follow the LATEST UPDATES 
Security sources told Reuters that authorities had sent a list of at least 40 leading members of the Brotherhood to airport police.
Egyptian troops, including commandos, are deploying at key sites and intersections throughout Egypt, including Suez and the highway to Alexandria. Several hundred soldiers, together with armored vehicles are taking part in a military parade on the road near the presidential palace, a witness told Reuters. The army reportedly erected barbed wire and barriers around the barracks where Morsi was working.
National security adviser Essam El-Haddad said that "no military coup can succeed in the face of sizeable popular force without considerable bloodshed." He added that he expects army and police violence to remove pro-Mursi demonstrators from the streets of Cairo. 
Troops have moved into place near the Rabaa Adaweya mosque area, where tens of thousands of supporters of Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood are rallying in support of the president, a Reuters journalist reported. But the Egyptian army denied that it was moving in on Morsi supporters, saying "The Egyptian army belongs to all Egyptians." 
A presidential aide said it was unclear if the president would be free to leave later to return to the palace. He added that Morsi's message to all Egyptians is to resist the military coup peacefully without using violence. 


Military vehicles heading in direction of pro Morsi rally ‪pic.twitter.com/74n7NBWlpc



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Morsi won't step down, proposes unity govt

Morsi has offered a consensus government as a way out of the country's crisis, but offered no new compromises. The leader has refused to step down, and instructed the military not to "take sides."
The proposed coalition government would include a Prime Minister elected by political powers, according to a presidential statement. The statement added that "the scenario that some parties are trying to impose is rejected by the people." 


Crowds cheer as army copter flies over prez palace protesters who are already celebrating:they believe they've won ‪pic.twitter.com/ut9gip1Yek


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The military ultimatum given to President Mohamed Morsi has come and gone, as hundreds of thousands of people take to the streets. Morsi previously rejected the deadline, which gave him 48 hours to meet the demands of the people before facing army intervention. 
Just before the afternoon deadline imposed by the military expired, Morsi again rejected army intervention. The leader said that abiding by his electoral legitimacy was the only way to prevent violence. He criticized the military for "taking only one side."
"One mistake that cannot be accepted, and I say this as president of all Egyptians, is to take sides," Morsi said in a  statement issued by his office. "Justice dictates that the voice of the masses from all squares should be heard."
The meeting between Commander-In-Chief of the Egyptian Armed Forces, Abdul Fatah Khalil Al-Sisi, and political forces is still ongoing, Al Arabiya reports. The most important issue being discussed is reportedly that of sending reassuring messages to the Brotherhood's leaders.
The two sides seem unwilling to budge, with protesters stating that Morsi and his Brotherhood party are pushing an Islamist agenda on Egypt.


Protesters on ‪#tahrir are chanting "People and police are one hand" ‪#egypt ‪#egyptianrevolution2013
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The Tamarod movement has called on Egyptians to take to the streets and squares immediately, and to listen to the army's speech.
The Brotherhood says the army’s actions amount to a coup and says that its members are ready to become martyrs to defend the president.

This combo image shows: Egyptian protesters calling for the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi (Top) and Egyptian supporters of President Mohamed Morsi (Bottom) (AFP Photo)

"There is only one thing we can do: we will stand in between the tanks and the president," Gehad El-Haddad, the MB official spokesman, told Reuters on Wednesday.
"We will not allow the will of the Egyptian people to be bullied again by the military machine." 


Egypt's army are discussing a new government with the prime minister until the next period of elections ‪#egypt ‪#egyptianrevolution2013
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Morsi believes it would be better to die “standing like a tree,” defending the electoral legitimacy of his office, than to go down in history as having destroyed Egyptians’ hopes for democracy, presidential spokesperson Ayman Ali said, as quoted by Reuters. 
Transitional period, then elections

Egypt's state news agency MENA says a short transitional period will be followed by presidential and parliamentary elections.
The country's leading Muslim and Christian clerics and the leader of the liberal opposition alliance Mohamed El-Baradei will jointly present a roadmap for a political transition shortly. Army generals will be present at the announcement, along with members of the Tamarud youth protest movement. 

The clerics would be the Grand Sheikh of Cairo's Al-Azhar institution, a leading authority in the Muslim world, and Pope Tawadros, the head of the Coptic Church and leader of Egypt's millions of Christians.
Army sources had previously said the army would issue a statement after the deadline expires at about 5 p.m. (1500 GMT) but no time has yet been set for official statements, according to the Facebook page of Egyptian military spokesman Col. Ahmad Muhammad Ali.
At least 39 people have died since anti-Morsi protests began on Sunday. A night of deadly clashes in Cairo on Tuesday night claimed the lives of at least 16 people, most of whom died in a single incident near Cairo University.
The Brotherhood blamed police for the shooting. The Interior Ministry said it was investigating and the governor of the Giza province, where the clash occurred, submitted his resignation


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