Spokesmen for Morsi, cabinet resign
Iran Press TV
Tue Jul 2, 2013 1:32PM GMT
The spokesmen for the Egyptian presidency and the cabinet have resigned amid growing pressure from the army and political spectrum for President Mohamed Morsi to step down.
Presidential spokesmen Ehab Fahmy and Omar Amer along with cabinet spokesman Alaa al-Hadidi tendered their resignations on Tuesday, the Associated Press reported.
Morsi’s crisis-hit administration has faced a string of resignations by Foreign Minister Kamel Amr and the ministers of tourism, environment, communication and legal affairs.
In a further blow to the president, an appeals court has ruled that former General-Prosecutor Abdel-Maguid Mahmoud, who had been sacked by Morsi in November, can return to office.
Meanwhile, large crowds of anti-government protesters are gathering in Cairo’s iconic Liberation Square, the birthplace of the 2011 revolution that toppled long-time dictator Hosni Mubarak.
Since June 30, millions of Egyptians have held nationwide protests to demand the resignation of Morsi and a snap election. The protesters accuse Morsi of failing to meet their demands for political and economic reform and realize the goals of the 2011 revolution.
On July 1, the Egyptian Army gave the president a 48-hour ultimatum to compromise with the opposition or the army would intervene and impose its own road map.
However, Morsi dismissed the army’s statement as an attempt to “deepen divisions and threaten the social peace,” and vowed to push ahead with his own plans for national reconciliation.
In a televised address on June 26, the president acknowledged that he had made some mistakes during his first year in office but called for national reconciliation. He said he was open to cooperating with the opposition on constitutional reform.
But Egypt’s main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front, rejected the offer, demanding the ouster of the incumbent president.
The opposition, however, has made it clear that it will not back a military coup in the post-revolution country.
MRS/PR
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