Egypt's army has given supporters of ousted Islamist president Mohammed Morsi 48 hours to join the "national ranks," or face an expected crackdown, dpa reported.
"The general commander of the Armed Forces has given a 48-hour deadline for a backdown and to join the national ranks," the army said in a statement, quoted by the state-run Middle East News Agency, without explicitly naming Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood.
The army said in the statement, entitled the "last chance," that after mass rallies called by army chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi on Friday, the military would adopt a new strategy against " violence and ... terrorism."