Egypt's armed forces and Islamist President Mohamed Mursi refused to back down on Wednesday (July 3) as a deadline for a military takeover passed with rival demonstrators out in force in the streets of Cairo.
Military chiefs, vowing to restore order in a country racked by protests over Mursi's Islamist policies, 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 Mursi refused to give up his elected office.
Armored vehicles took up position outside the state broadcasting headquarters on the Nile River bank, where soldiers patrolled the corridors and non-essential staff were sent home. But there was no other immediate sign of military action to remove the Muslim Brotherhood president.
