Jeremy Hodge (@JeremyHodge2) is an American currently working in Egypt as an Arabic translator and freelance journalist with Daily News Egypt, who has watched the country transform before his eyes since before the revolution that ousted longtime leader Hosni Mubarak in February of 2011, to now.
Whereas the country was relatively safe in the fall of 2010, when he studied abroad at the American University of Cairo, Egypt has now become a place where he described one of the most well-known squares in Cairo as a "war zone."
Hodge, who returned to Egypt roughly 9 months ago after spending the spring of 2011 in Jerusalem, has been documenting the recent chaos in the streets, and the videos are staggering.
During today's "Day of Rage," Hodge traveled to Ramses Square, where, he told TheBlaze in an email interview, "pro-Morsi supporters had gathered to demonstrate after the conclusion of Friday prayers."
The demonstration turned wildly violent with what sounded like constant gun shots, possibly including some type of artillery.
Hodge posted video of the pandemonium (content warning: profanity and violence):
"By the time that video was shot, army, police and local residents had begun attacking the pro-Morsi demonstrators located in the square," Hodge told TheBlaze.
"Residents were attacking pro-Morsi demonstrators with empty glass bottles, rocks, in addition to live ammo fired from pistols and handguns. The army and police meanwhile fired upon pro-Morsi supporters using tanks, 50 caliber machine guns and rifles. Pro-Morsi supporters responded with molotov cocktails and by shooting fireworks, (which they had initially brought to demonstrate) at those residents who attacked them, in addition to the police and armed forces."
In another video, Hodge was forced to run, saying "they're shooting fireworks at us!" as presumed pro-Morsi supporters turned the fireworks on the crowd.
More than 700 people have been reported dead since the violence began on Wednesday, the number only continues to grow.
Though not a supporter of the Brotherhood himself, Hodge explained: "Campaigns to de-humanize pro-Morsi supporters and the Muslim Brotherhood have unfortunately been largely successful, and I feel that despite the massacres which have occurred and large number of human rights violations which have been seen and registered, that many within Egypt are still in support of the killing of those who they feel have lost political legitimacy."
Despite the violence and chaos in the streets, Hodge remains optimistic that civil war is not on the horizon.
A supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood and of ousted president Mohamed Morsi runs past a burning vehicle during clashes with security officers close to Cairo's Ramses Square, on August 16, 2013. Credit: AFP/Getty Images
"At the moment, Egypt's army has a monopoly on advanced weaponry and armed force. Even if some pro-Morsi supporters have been seen using AK-47's or other firearms during clashes, as long as the military remains intact as an institution, the balance of power will be too lopsided for the Brotherhood or any of its military surrogates to do any real damage to state infrastructure," he wrote.
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