A major general in the Egyptian security services told Egyptians to stop complaining about hunger and poverty for the sake of the country's prosperity, during a meeting at an unidentified location on Saturday.

In a video, circulated on social media, Mohamed Mansour was seen telling Egyptians it was "rude" of them to complain about rising prices or a shortage of food supplies.

"We want a kilo of oil, the oil is too expensive, no sugar... that's just rude guys," said Mansour mockingly of Egyptians complaining about the country's economic crisis.

"There's no other way to describe it," he added.

He went on to encourage Egyptians to "go hungry" and "sacrifice their dinner" for the sake of Egypt.

Egyptians took to the streets in several cities on Tuesday in angry demonstrations at government cuts to bread subsidies.

Reports and videos on social media showed crowds in central Alexandria protesting after bakeries refused to take paper subsidy cards, which many poor Egyptians use to gain a government ration of bread.

Protests were also reported in Egypt's southern Minya governorate and the Cairo suburb of Imbaba.

As part of a package of economic reforms to secure a bailout loan of $12bn from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi floated the Egyptian pound and slashed fuel subsidies in November.

Inflation soared to 31.7 percent in February, leaving Egyptians battling an ever rising cost of living while wage rates remain stagnant.