Allies of deposed Egyptian
President Mohamed Morsi told mediators on Saturday that they respected the
demands of a mass protest that led to his downfall but that army chief Abdel
Fattah al-Sisi must not be part of any political deal.
Tarek El-Malt, spokesman for the pro-Morsi
delegation that met the envoys from the United States and the European Union,
also said Morsi's allies were seeking a solution to Egypt's crisis based on a
constitution suspended after he was deposed.
For his part, Egyptian army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, asked by the Washington Post on Saturday whether he planned to run for president, said he did not "aspire for authority."
"You just can't believe that there are people who don't aspire for authority," Sisi told the interviewer. Asked "Is that you?", he replied: "Yes."
Sisi, who led the overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Mursi on July 3, urged the United States to use its leverage over Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood to end a political crisis that has killed scores over the past month.
This comes after supporters of
deposed Egyptian President Morsi continued their sit-in outside the Rabaah
al-Adawiya mosque in Cairo on Saturday morning, in defiance of demands made by
the interim government for them to return to their homes.
Authorities outlined plans on
Friday to break up two sit-ins by Morsi supporters, saying they would set up a
cordon around the protest sites at the Rabaah al-Adawiya mosque and a smaller
one near Cairo.
The military-backed interim
government seeks to end a political stalemate that has paralyzed Egypt and
deeply divided the country.
Supporters of Morsi and his
Muslim Brotherhood say they will not disperse until he is returned to
power.
Morsi's ouster followed days of
demonstrations by millions who rallied against him and the rule of his Muslim
Brotherhood, claiming Morsi's one-year rule was rampant with political failures
and focused on concentrating power in the hands of his Islamist group.
Reactions:
Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri urged Egypt's Muslim
Brotherhood and its supporters to abandon democracy and seek to govern through
the full implementation of Islamic law.
In a 15-minute recording posted on Islamist
websites on Saturday, Zawahri also criticized Islamists who had formed
political parties in Egypt and supported the Egyptian military in ousting
former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi.
"The crusaders, the secularists, the
pro-US army and former Mubarak supporters and a few of those who are linked to
the Islamists have worked with Gulf money and U.S. planning to overthrow
Mohamed Morsi's government," Zawahri said.
REUTERS/AP
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