Egypt's army chief warns of collapse of state

The head of the Egyptian military said political conflict in the country could lead to the collapse of the state and protecting the Suez Canal was one of the main objectives of an army deployment in nearby cities shaken by violence.   

"The continuation of the struggle of the different political forces ... over the management of state affairs could lead to the collapse of the state," General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is also defence minister, said. His remarks were published on the official Facebook page of the army spokesman.

Earlier, Egyptian protesters defied an overnight curfew in restive towns along the Suez Canal, attacking police stations after Islamist President Mohamed Mursi imposed emergency rule to end days of clashes that have left at least 52 people dead.   

At least two men died in overnight fighting in the canal city of Port Said, the latest unrest in a wave of violence unleashed last week on the eve of the anniversary of the 2011 revolt that brought down autocrat Hosni Mubarak.   

Political opponents spurned a call by Mursi for talks on Monday to try to end the violence. Instead, huge crowds of protesters took to the streets in Cairo and Alexandria, and in the three Suez Canal cities - Port Said, Ismailia and Suez - where Mursi imposed emergency rule and a curfew on Sunday.   

"Down, down with Mohamed Mursi! Down, down with the state of emergency!" crowds shouted in Ismailia. In Cairo, flames lit up the night sky as protesters set vehicles ablaze.    The demonstrators accuse Mubarak's successor Mursi of betraying the two-year-old revolution. Mursi and his supporters accuse the protesters of seeking to overthrow Egypt's first ever democratically elected leader by undemocratic means.   

Debris from days of unrest was strewn on the streets around Cairo's Tahrir Square, cauldron of the anti-Mubarak uprising.   

Youths clambered over a burned-out police van. But unlike on previous mornings in the past few days, there was no early sign of renewed clashes with police.   

In Port Said, men attacked police stations after dark. A security source said some police and troops were injured. A medical source said two men were killed and 12 injured in the clashes, including 10 with gunshot wounds.   

"The people want to bring down the regime," crowds chanted in Alexandria. "Leave means go, and don't say no!"   

Since Mubarak was toppled, Islamists have won two referendums, two parliamentary elections and a presidential vote.   

But that legitimacy has been challenged by an opposition that accuses Mursi of imposing a new form of authoritarianism, and punctuated by repeated waves of unrest that have prevented a return to stability in the most populous Arab state.   

The army has already been deployed in Port Said and Suez and the government agreed a measure to let soldiers arrest civilians as part of the state of emergency.


REUTERS