Morsi rejects ultimatum from army

President Mohamed Morsi has rebuffed an army ultimatum to find a resolution to Egypt’s political crisis, saying that he has not been consulted and will pursue his own plans for national reconciliation.

Morsi described the 48-hour deadline, set on Monday by the head of the armed forces for him to agree on a common platform with liberal rivals, as confusing.

The protests have drawn at least 14 million people into the streets, with a large number of them demanding Morsi’s resignation.

In a statement issued at nearly 2am on Tuesday, nine hours after General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi delighted Morsi’s opponents by effectively ordering the president to heed the demands of demonstrators, the president’s office used considerably less direct language.

“The president of the republic was not consulted about the statement issued by the armed forces,” it said.

“The presidency sees that some of the statements in it carry meanings that could cause confusion in the complex national environment.”

Spate of resignations

The stalemate has triggered a series of resignations by cabinet ministers, leaving Morsi isolated.

Senior officials who have quit include foreign minister Mohamed Kamel Amr, who tendered his resignation on Tuesday.

Others who have resigned are tourism minister Hisham Zaazou; communication and IT minister Atef Helmi; the minister for legal and parliamentary affairs, Hatem Bagato; water minister Abdel Qawy Khalifa; and environment minister Khaled Abdel-Aal.

Morsi also lost the support of Sami Enan, his military adviser, who resigned and said the army would not “abandon the will of the people.”

Early on Tuesday, Washington confirmed reports that President Obama had called the Egyptian leader about the crisis.

The US president “told President Morsi that the United States is committed to the democratic process in Egypt and does not support any single party or group,” a statement from the White House said.

Obama encouraged Morsi “to take steps to show that he is responsive to their [people’s] concerns, and underscored that the current crisis can only be resolved through a political process.”

Obama also repeated his concern about reports of violence during rallies, particularly reports of sexual assaults against women.

At least seven people, including a US citizen, have been killed and dozens injured in clashes between protesters opposed to Morsi and those backing him.

Al Jazeera’s Nicole Johnston, reporting from Cairo on Tuesday morning, said there had been no new serious outbreak of violence.

“Massive rallies and sit-ins are to continue because both the pro-Morsi camp and opposition groups have called for huge demonstrations,” she said.

“The main focal point for opposition groups will be Tahrir square. Morsi supporters will continue to gather in large numbers in locations across Nasr city. The other big question is: When will the president speak to his people, and what will he come up with?”

Army ultimatum

The Egyptian army gave the country’s politicians a 48 hours ultimatum to resolve the current political stalemate, emboldening Morsi’s opponents and pushing the most populous Arab nation deeper into uncertainty.

“The national security of the state is in severe danger,” said an army statement, warning that if there was no resolution the military would “be obliged by its patriotic and historic responsibilities… to announce a road map for the future and the steps for overseeing its implementation, with participation of all patriotic and sincere parties and movements.”

It described the mass protests on Sunday that brought out millions of Egyptians demanding Morsi’s resignation as “glorious”.

Opponents of Morsi viewed the army statement as an endorsement and continued to flood the streets to press on the president to step down.

Morsi supporters criticised the ultimatum as an attempted coup. A group of pro-Morsi parties, calling themselves the “coalition to defend legitimacy,” called for mass protests in support of the president during a late-night press conference.

“We reject attempts to use the army to attack the legitimacy of the president,” said Safwat Abdel Ghani, a senior member of the Gamaa al-Islamiyya.

Morsi’s office in a statement early on Tuesday morning said the president was not aware of the ultimatum before it was issued and insisted that he was working to reconcile the country’s political factions and resolve the crisis.

Hours after the ultimatum, army helicopters flew over Tahrir Square trailing large Egyptian flags, a move interpreted by protesters as a show of support.

“The army and the people are one hand,” protesters chanted.

Tamarod, the grassroots campaign behind the latest anti-Morsi protests, praised the statement, saying it showed the military was on the side of the people.

al jazeera