A soldier sets up barbed wire in anticipation of protesters outside the constitutional court in Cairo on Sunday, August 18. The protesters never showed up. Over the past week, about 900 people -- security forces as well as citizens -- have been killed. Deaths occurred when the military used force to clear supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsy from two sit-in sites in Cairo on Wednesday, and violence raged after Morsy supporters staged demonstrations Friday. Look back at Egypt's unrest.
(CNN) -- Cold and shivering, Habiba Ahmed Abd Elaziz exchanged worried texts with her mother Wednesday morning as Egyptian security forces moved toward and blocked roads leading to a protest camp in Cairo.
"The crowds are massive and on high alert. Pray for us, mother."
"I entrust you to God the Almighty," her mother responded.
"I'm heading to the platform in a little while. There are tanks there," Elaziz replied.
It was her last text.
Elaziz, 26, was one of the scores of people killed as security forces stormed Rabaa al-Adawiya camp filled with supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy. It was not clear who fired the bullet during clashes between the two sides.
The dramatic text exchange, published by The National, was confirmed to CNN by Elaziz's younger sister, Arwa Ramadan.
A staff reporter with the United Arab Emirates-based Xpress weekly newspaper, Elaziz was in her native Egypt in a personal capacity, having celebrated the Eid holiday.
Morsy supporters vow to continue protests
Egypt: Tear gas, intimidation and death
CNN crew ducks gunfire on air
She was assisting the injured at the camp, according to Ramadan.
Bloodiest day since revolution marks new 'beginning' for Egypt
Elaziz joined Xpress as an intern in September 2011 and later took a full-time position, according to Dubai-based Gulf News, a sister publication.
"It's hard to believe she's gone," said Xpress deputy editor Mazha Farooqui. "She was passionate about her work and had a promising career ahead."
Clashes turn square into bloody 'war zone'
Without knowing what had happened, Elaziz's mother, who lives in Sharjah, an emirate in the United Arab Emirates, texted a prayer to her daughter and wrote a message of support for protesters in Egypt.
"God I entrust to you with my husband Ahmed and my daughter Habiba. May we not be bereaved over any of them. God empower them and support them and keep them steadfast at the moment of encounter today."
And then this text:
"Habiba, please reassure me. I've called thousands of times. Please, my darling, I'm worried sick. Tell me how you are."
The mother called Elaziz's phone around noon. Someone picked up the phone and told her the young journalist was dead. Elaziz's father was OK.
The mother and three siblings were scheduled to arrive in Egypt late Wednesday.
Cameraman killed in Cairo violence
CNN's Leone Lakhani reported from Abu Dhabi and Phil Gast wrote in Atlanta. CNN's Richard Greene also contributed.
Loading weather data ...
© 2013 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Friends and relatives of Ammar Badie, 38, killed Friday during clashes in Ramses Square, carry his coffin during his funeral in Al-Hamed mosque in Cairo on August 18. Ammar Badie was the son of the Muslim Brotherhood's spiritual leader, Mohammed Badie.
Wreckage and debris litter the area around the Al-Fateh mosque in Cairo, where hundreds of Islamist protesters had barricaded themselves on Saturday, August 17. Thousands defied an emergency order by taking to the streets the day before to mark a "Friday of anger" in support of ousted President Mohamed Morsy.
Riot police enter the community services hall of the Al-Fateh mosque, where Morsy supporters had holed up on August 17.
Policemen stand guard inside a room of Al-Fateh mosque as supporters of Morsy exchange gunfire with security forces inside the mosque in Cairo on Saturday, August 17.
Egyptians security forces escort a supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood out of the Al-Fateh mosque and through an angry crowd in Ramses Square on August 17.
An army officer escorts an Islamist woman out of Cairo's Al-Fateh mosque on August 17.
A Morsy supporter prays on the floor of the Al-Fateh mosque in Ramses Square as injured protesters are treated nearby on Friday, August 16.
A wounded boy is treated in the Taamin Sehi field hospital during clashes on August 16.
A supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood runs past a burning vehicle near Cairo's Ramses Square during clashes with security officers on August 16.
Morsy supporters carry supplies while violent clashes continue to take place near Ramses Square on August 16.
An Egyptian man offers a bottle of juice to policemen as clashes between Morsy supporters and security forces continue in Cairo on August 16.
Members of the Muslim Brotherhood and Morsy supporters flee shooting near Ramses Square in Cairo on August 16.
A Muslim Brotherhood member and Morsy supporter wears a gas mask made out of a plastic bottle during clashes in front of the Azbkya police station on August 16.
Morsy supporters march in Cairo. Gunfire was heard from the overpass as tear gas was fired.
Demonstrators hurt in the clashes at Ramses Square are taken away on August 16 in Cairo.
A military helicopter flies above demonstrators in Cairo on August 16.
A protester receives treatment at the Al-Fateh mosque in Cairo on August 16.
Bodies of protesters who died during clashes are laid out at the Al-Fateh mosque on August 16.
A group of men gather around an injured protester in Giza on August 16.
Demonstrators and Muslim Brotherhood supporters carry the body of a man apparently shot during clashes with security forces in Giza district on the outskirts of Cairo on August 16.
Morsy supporters demonstrate outside Al-Fateh mosque in Ramses Square in Cairo on August 16.
Protesters demonstrate near Ennour mosque in Cairo on August 16.
A flag-covered coffin of a man killed during Wednesday's clashes is carried at Amr Ibn Al-As mosque before a funeral in Cairo on August 16.
A protester wounded during clashes braces for help outside of a church on Mourad Street in Giza on August 16.
Egyptian soldiers take positions alongside armored vehicles as they guard the entrance to Tahrir Square in Cairo on Friday, August 16.
A Morsy supporter takes part in a protest near Ennour mosque in Cairo on August 16.
People reach for a coffin on Thursday, August 15, during a funeral for police officers killed during a crackdown at two protest camps in support of Morsy.
Egyptian police officers attend the funeral for their colleagues on August 15.
Men are detained near a burned section of Rabaa Al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on August 15.
People search through debris at Rabaa al-Adawiya Square on August 15.
A man on August 15 checks out a list of names of those killed in the crackdown.
Egyptians mourn over a body wrapped in shrouds at a Cairo mosque August 15.
Morsy supporters carry a coffin into a mosque in Cairo's Nasr City on August 15.
A woman weeps after identifying the body of a relative on August 15 at a Cairo mosque.
A man walks inside the burned-out Rabaa Al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on August 15.
Motorcyclists pass by debris, including Morsy posters, in Cairo's Nahda Square on August 15.
Supporters of Morsy shout during clashes with Egyptian police at the Rabaah Al-Adawiya protest camp in Cairo's Nasr City district on August 14.
A woman tries to stop a military bulldozer from hurting a wounded youth during clashes on August 14 in eastern Cairo.
Morsy supporters run as Egyptian security forces fire toward them on August 14.
An injured youth is seen at a makeshift hospital in Cairo on August 14.
Supporters of Morsy take cover from Egyptian security forces during clashes on August 14.
A Morsy supporter reacts after identifying the body of a dead family member at the Rabaa al-Adawiya Medical Center on August 14 in Cairo.
The national identity cards of protesters allegedly killed during a clear-out operation by Egyptian security forces on pro-Morsy demonstrators are exchanged at the Rabaa al-Adawiya Medical Center on August 14.
A Morsy supporter lies wounded on a stretcher at the Rabaa al-Adawiya Medical Center on August 14.
Plumes of smoke rise from the site of a protest in support of deposed President Morsy in Cairo on August 14.
Army bulldozers remove a barricade erected by supporters of Morsy during clashes with riot police at Cairo's Mustafa Mahmoud Square on August 14.
Supporters of Morsy push a police vehicle off the 6th of October Bridge in Cairo on August 14.
A member of the Egyptian security forces lies on the ground in Cairo on August 14 after a police vehicle was pushed off the 6th of October Bridge.
A man grieves at a makeshift morgue in Cairo on August 14.
Morsy supporters confront police at Cairo's Mustafa Mahmoud Square on August 14.
Morsy supporters carry a wounded man during clashes with riot police in Cairo on August 14.
A Morsy supporter during clashes with police in Cairo on August 14.
Riot police stand behind a wounded man near Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on August 14.
Supporters of Morsy and members of the Muslim Brotherhood run from tear gas as security forces move in at the site of a pro-Morsy sit-in in Cairo on August 14.
A Morsy supporter sits under arrest at Cairo's Nahda Square on August 14.
Egyptians help a woman suffering from tear gas exposure in a street leading to Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on August 14.
Egyptian security forces detain protesters in Cairo's Nasr City district on August 14.
The scene from a street in Cairo's Nasr City appears chaotic as security forces clear a sit-in August 14.
A woman tries to protect herself from tear gas in Cairo on August 14.
Muslim Brotherhood supporters run from tear gas in a street leading to Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on August 14.
Protesters gather in Cairo's Rabaa al-Adawiya Square on Monday, August 12.
|