DHAKA: Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has celebrated the 2013 overthrow of the country’s first democratically-elected president by ordering a lavish military display in the capital and celebrations across the country.

Warplanes roared over Cairo early on Thursday as Sisi addressed the nation in a pre-recorded address while his supporters were instructed to amass in the streets later in the evening after the breaking of the Ramadan fast.

“On this glorious day, I would like to assure you that we are working hard to realise the hopes of the Egyptian people for the better future they deserve,” Sisi said in his early-morning televised speech.

Thursday’s holiday, which the government refers to as the “June 30 Revolution” was also marked with musical performances and free entry to museums.

Morsi, who was Egypt’s first freely elected leader, was toppled by the military in July 2013 following days of mass street protests by Egyptians demanding that he be removed.

Sisi has launched a persistent and extensive crackdown on Islamic activists and has declared the Muslim Brotherhood a “terrorist organization”.

Thousands of Brotherhood members have been sentenced to death or life imprisonment, while others are standing trial or being held without formal charges.

In April, thousands of people marched Cairo in the biggest anti-government demonstrations since Sisi took office in 2014, shouting slogans such as “Down with the regime” and ‘Leave’, both of which were used during the 2011 revolution that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak.

BDST: 0947 HRS, JULY 1, 2016
BD