Morsi supporters
Morsi supportersReuters

Supporters of deposed Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi have no intention of backing down on their protests against the military.

With Friday, the day on which the largest protests usually take place following prayers at the mosques, just around the corner, a group of Morsi supporters is calling on Egyptians to hold "Friday of Martyrs" protests against the military.

A grouping calling itself The National Coalition to Support Legitimacy, which has been demanding Morsi's reinstatement, said in a statement quoted by Reuters on Wednesday, "We will remain steadfast on the road to defeating the military coup."

Almost 900 people, including more than 100 soldiers and police officers, have been killed since the authorities forcibly dispersed Muslim Brotherhood sit-ins in Cairo last Wednesday.

The ongoing violence since the military deposed Morsi in July has prompted the Egyptian government to begin deliberations on whether to ban the Muslim Brotherhood, as it had been for years until the fall of former President Hosni Mubarak.

The United States and the European Union are both reviewing aid to Cairo in light of the bloodshed, but Saudi Arabia, a foe of the Brotherhood, has promised to make up any shortfall.

On Wednesday, European Union foreign ministers agreed to suspend the sale of security equipment and arms to Egypt that could be used for internal repression.

The 28-nation bloc's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the ministers strongly condemned the disproportionate use of force by the Egyptian security forces but also violence by some of those opposed to the authorities.

“We strongly condemn all acts of violence and we do believe the recent actions of the military have been disproportionate,” Ashton told a news conference at the close of a four-hour meeting between the ministers.

The EU ministers stopped short of halting aid programs for fear of hitting ordinary citizens.

Last Friday, protests by Morsi supporters turned violent with over a hundred reported dead across the country as the Muslim Brotherhood staged a "Day of Rage."