Egypt interim president defends coup

In his first interview since taking office, Egypt's interim president defended the military's removal of former President Mohamed Morsi, Wednesday, and said his government's top priority was to restore security.

Adly Mansour told a state television channel that Egypt was "moving towards democracy" and that the country was sticking to a military-backed road map for transition after the July 3 coup.

Despite ongoing protests by anti-coup protesters, Mansour said Egypt's interim government was charging ahead with a transition plan, appointing a committee to review the constitution passed under Morsi.

A new version of that document is to be put to a referendum within two months, and if passed, will open the way for presidential and parliamentary elections.

"The state, with all its agencies, will not allow any party to prevent it satisfying the aspirations of the people," he said, referring to the hundreds of thousands of Egyptians that protested against Morsi on June 30, marking the then-president’s one-year anniversary in office.

Tens of thousands of others protested in support of Morsi and led weeks-long sit-ins in Cairo demanding the deposed president’s reinstatement. The sit-ins only ended after security forces cracked down on protesters, leading to more than 1,000 deaths and hundreds of arrests.

Mansour defended the reinstatement of emergency laws in the meantime, and said that his government would not hold reconciliation talks with any individuals who had incited or participated in violence.

"Acts of terrorism and an aggressive war by extremists led us to this decision," he said.

The interview aired on the same day that a military tribunal issued verdicts against supporters of Morsi and a court ordered channels perceived to be sympathetic to the former regime off the air.

Al Jazeera and wire services