Hardline Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi was minutes ago overthrown by the country’s military following the expiration of the 48 hours deadline given to him to heed to the people’s call to quit.

A military statement just released in Cairo, the Egyptian capital, suspends the country’s constitution and puts in place a new caretaker government to organise fresh elections. Egyptian army has deployed troops and tanks around Cairo and Alexandria to enforce the apparent coup.

Reacting on the official Facebook page of the presidency, Morsi said the announcement made by the armed forces is a coup and that he rejects it. He said that as president and head of the armed forces he calls on all civil and military citizens to abide by constitution and law and not respond to the coup.

The official website of the Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood, Ikhwan Online, writes that the military’s announcement is a “conspiracy against legitimacy, a military coup that wastes popular will and brings Egypt back to despotism.”

The statement continued: “Religious scholars condemn the coup and affirm the necessity of upholding the elected president. Symbols of the defunct regime are coming back to the scene at the expense of the blood of the martyrs of the 25 January.”

The statement also claimed that “millions in many squares in Egypt have started a sit-in in support of legitimacy.”

The 61 years old Morsi assumed office on June 2012 last year on the back of the Muslim Brotherhood following elections held in the wake of the ouster of veteran president Hosni Mubarak. He however soon lost the people’s favour due to his autocratic rule and failure to quickly deliver the expected dividends of democracy.

•Photo: Morsi – GONE WITH THE WINDS.