Egypt’s army gives parties 48 hours to resolve crisis

Egypt’s army has given the country’s rival parties 48 hours to resolve a deadly political crisis.

The army would offer a “road map” for peace if President Mohammed Morsi and his opponents failed to heed “the will of the people”, it said.

Given the inability of politicians from all sides to agree until now, it seems unlikely Morsi can survive in power, says the BBC’s Aleem Maqbool in Cairo,according to BBC.

On Sunday millions rallied in cities nationwide, urging Mr Morsi to quit.

Protests continued on Monday, and eight people died as activists stormed and ransacked the Cairo headquarters of the” Muslim Brotherhood”, to which the president belongs.

The head of the armed forces described Sunday’s protests as an “unprecedented” expression of the popular will.

The statement by the minister of defence and army chief, Gen al-Sisi, was worded carefully.

It did not say the president must go. The army, with troops in strategic positions across Cairo, is saying the government and opposition have 48 hours to agree a way forward or it will intervene with its own plan.

The reality is they have never given up their critical role behind the scenes, which includes huge economic power.

No matter which way Egypt goes – and there could be some very rough days ahead – the army will never want its own power diluted.

In a statement read out by a spokesman on state television on Monday evening, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said the army would not get involved in politics or government.

The opposition movement behind the protests, Tamarod (Rebel), welcomed the statement, but said it would continue demonstrations to force Mr Morsi out.

There were scenes of flag-waving jubilation in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, where Tamarod supporters believed the statement spelt the end for a president they accuse of putting the Brotherhood’s interests ahead of the country’s as a whole.

As five helicopters flew over the square with huge Egyptian flags hanging below them, the crowds chanted: “The army and the people are one hand.”

But a senior member of the’ Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party (FJP)” rejected the military statement.

 The opposition movement had given Morsi until Tuesday afternoon to step down and call fresh presidential elections, or else face a campaign of civil disobedience.

On Saturday, the group said it had collected more than 22 million signatures – more than a quarter of Egypt’s population – in support.

Meanwhile, the al-Watan website said the ministers of tourism, environment, communication and legal affairs had resigned in an act of “solidarity with the people’s demand to overthrow the regime”.

M.D