Egypt in post-election turmoil: Tens of thousands take to Tahrir

Tens of thousands of Egyptians have descended on Tahrir Square in Cairo as the results of the country's recent presidential elections are pending. Meanwhile, the Muslim Brotherhood claims its candidate's victory, stirring tensions along the way.

People at Tahrir are calling on the ruling military council to step down, and at the same time declare Muslim Brotherhood candidate Mohamed Morsi the winner, RT's Paula Slier reports from Cairo.

The majority of those on the square are Muslim Brotherhood supporters, but more people are still arriving. The crowd intends to stay on Tahrir until Sunday, when the official results of the election are to be announced.

On Friday the military authorities issued a statement accusing the Muslim Brotherhood of raising tensions by claiming their candidate's victory. The military announced that the mass celebrations proposed by Islamists would only result in violence.

Two days following the polls' close the Muslim Brotherhood declared Morsi had won. Former PM Ahmed Shafik also proclaimed himself president.

Morsi has warned against falsifying the election results. “The expected result is known to everyone,” he told a news conference on Friday. “We will not allow anyone to tamper with the results.”

Morsi also said he wanted neither “confrontation nor violence,” but would continue to protest the military council's moves to limit the powers of the president-elect.

Meanwhile, the country’s election commission is dealing with over 400 allegations of voting fraud lodged by both campaigns.

The election process in Egypt has been dogged with allegations of fraud and misconduct amid widespread concerns that the interim military government is stalling the power transfer.

A general view shows supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood's presidential candidate Mohamed Morsy shouting slogans during a demonstration against the delay of the Egyptian presidential results and to protest against the Supreme Council for the Armed Forces (SCAF) at Tahrir square in Cairo June 22, 2012. (Reuters/Amr Abdallah Dalsh)