Police likely to act against pro-Morsi protesters in Cairo: Report

Egyptian riot police are likely to begin taking action in less than 24 hours against supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi, who are holding sit-ins in protest camps in Cairo, security sources say.

A senior Egyptian security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity said, “State security troops will be deployed around the sit-ins by dawn as a start of procedures that will eventually lead to a dispersal.”

According to the report, surrounding the camps will be the first step to drive away pro-Morsi demonstrators.

Another security source also said the decision was made after a meeting between Egypt’s interior minister and his advisors.

Tension has intensified in Egypt since July 3 when the Egyptian army removed Morsi from office. The army also suspended the constitution and dissolved parliament.

Morsi’s supporters have staged massive sit-ins in two protest camps in Cairo since his ouster. The camps are considered the main flashpoints in the confrontation between the Egyptian military and pro-Morsi protesters, who call for his reinstatement.

Hundreds of protesters, mostly Morsi’s supporters, have been killed or wounded during the unrelenting violence that erupted since the removal of Morsi.

Earlier in the day, the Anti-Coup Pro-Democracy Alliance, which is one of the largest political formations in Egypt, said at least ten separate marches had been planned from various parts of the capital to “defend the electoral legitimacy” of Morsi.

On July 5, Muslim Brotherhood supreme leader Mohammed Badie said the ouster of Morsi was illegal and millions would remain on the streets until he is reinstated as president. He vowed to “complete the revolution” that toppled the regime of former dictator Hosni Mubarak in 2011.