Egypt was on the edge on Thursday ahead of rival rallies by supporters of Mohammed Morsi and the military-backed protesters, with the army insisting that it was not targeting backers of the ousted Islamist President in its call for or a mass protest to counter ‘terrorism’.
Meanwhile, Morsi’s last prime minister on Thursday proposed a plan to ease tensions in Egypt, as the Islamist leader’s loyalists braced for a showdown with the military. Hisham Qandil, who has kept a low profile since Morsi’s overthrow on July 3, proposed in a video
posted on YouTube the release of prisoners since the coup and allowing a delegation to visit Morsi, detained by the army.
Egypt’s presidency called for peaceful protests on Friday after Defence Minister Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s speech urged Egyptians to empower the army with what he called a popular ‘mandate’ to confront “violence and terrorism”.
Also on Thursday, the Supreme leader of Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Badie, called on Egyptians to peacefully make a “stand for freedom and legitimacy, and against the bloody coup”. “We urge citizens to go out on Friday to protect revolutionary legitimacy and support counter-terrorist efforts,” Meslemany had said on Wednesday.