Army ousts Egypt's President Morsi
The head of Egypt's army has given a TV address, announcing that President Mohammed Morsi is no longer in office.
Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi said the constitution had been
suspended and the chief justice of the constitutional court would take
on Mr Morsi's powers.Flanked by religious and opposition leaders, Gen Sisi said Mr Morsi had "failed to meet the demands of the Egyptian people".
Anti-Morsi protesters in Cairo gave a huge cheer in response to the speech.
The army's move to depose the president follows four days of mass street demonstrations against Mr Morsi, and an ultimatum issued by the military which expired on Wednesday afternoon.
It took the Muslim Brotherhood eight decades to come into
power. It's unlikely they ever considered it would only last for a year.
The crowd in Tahrir Square roared its approval of General Sisi's eagerly anticipated and largely expected announcement. Millions of Egyptians from all walks of life have felt ignored and belittled since Mr Morsi gained power - he spoke, they say, for his party alone.
The army does not want the world to call this a coup. But conventional wisdom and politics tells us this was a military coup.
As the statement was read, an Egyptian woman standing next to me said: "There is jubilation on the streets but do they understand what's behind it?" In truth perhaps no one does yet.
The crowd in Tahrir Square roared its approval of General Sisi's eagerly anticipated and largely expected announcement. Millions of Egyptians from all walks of life have felt ignored and belittled since Mr Morsi gained power - he spoke, they say, for his party alone.
The army does not want the world to call this a coup. But conventional wisdom and politics tells us this was a military coup.
As the statement was read, an Egyptian woman standing next to me said: "There is jubilation on the streets but do they understand what's behind it?" In truth perhaps no one does yet.
TV stations belonging to Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood went off air at the end of the speech.
Minutes later, a notice went up on Mr Morsi's Facebook page denouncing the army move as a "military coup".The statement asked Egyptian citizens - both civilians and military - to "abide by the constitution and the law and not to respond to this coup".
The ousted leader's current whereabouts are unclear.
'Roadmap' for the future
General Sisi said on state TV that the armed forces could not stay silent and blind to the call of the Egyptian masses.
He spoke of a new roadmap for the future, and said that the chief justice of the Supreme Constitutional Court, Adli Mansour, would be given the task of "running the country's affairs during the transitional period until the election of a new president".
After Gen Sisi's address, both Pope Tawadros II - the head of the Coptic Church - and leading opposition figure Mohammed ElBaradei made short televised speeches about the new roadmap for Egypt's future which they had agreed with the army.
Mr ElBaradei said the roadmap aimed for national reconciliation and represented a fresh start to the January 2011 revolution.
"This roadmap has been drafted by honourable people who seek the interests, first and foremost, of the country," added Pope Tawadros.