Egypt has told the Turkish ambassador to leave the country after prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Friday for ousted President Mohammed Morsi to be freed.
Turkey has been a vocal critic of the overthrow of Mr Morsi by the Army on 3 July and recently condemned the violent dispersal of pro-Morsi protesters by security forces on 14 August.
Blaming Turkey's interference in its internal affairs, Cairo on Saturday expelled ambassador Huseyin Avni Botsali and downgraded relations between the two countries. It says relations with Ankara will be lowered to charge d'affaires level.
In response, Turkey announced the downgrading of ties and barred the Egyptian ambassador, declaring him "persona non grata".
"I hope our relations will again get back on track," said President Abdullah Gul in a live address on TRT television.
