Egyptian army sets 48 hours as deadline before interference

The Egyptian army on Monday set 48 hours as a deadline for all parties to resolve the crisis before imposing a military-supervised roadmap for the future of Egypt, the defense minister said in an audio speech aired on state TV.

"The Armed Force will not be part of politics or rule," Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi stressed in the speech.

The defense minister said that the 48-hour deadline represents "the last chance" for all the parties to meet the demands of the people and resolve the crisis, referring to the current circumstances as "historical."

"Wasting more time will lead to more division and conflict," Sisi warned, noting that the people have already been suffering a lot over the ongoing political crisis.

Sisi said that the army's future roadmap would be carried out " with participation of all honest parties and national forces, particularly the youth, without isolation of any party."

"The national security of the country is in danger," the defense minister warned, stressing the armed forces would not give up its national and historical role.

Sisi added that the protests of the people, with such will and resolution, have attracted internal, regional and international " admiration and appreciation."

On June 23, Sisi said the army is obliged to intervene to prevent the country from sliding into a dark tunnel of conflicts, internal fighting and sectarian strife.

"We still have one week left, in which a lot can be done," Sisi said last week, urging all political forces to achieve real reconciliation for the sake of Egypt ahead of the mass protests on June 30.

Meanwhile, the presidency asserted in several occasions that the military's only mission is to preserve national security, expressing reservation over military mediation or intervention.

In the biggest protests Egypt has witnessed since the 2011 upheaval that toppled ex-president Hosni Mubarak, anti-Morsi protesters took to Tahrir Square and the vicinity of the presidential palace in Cairo, as well as several squares in other governorates, while supporters of President Mohamed Morsi continued their sit-in for the fourth consecutive day at Rabia al- Adawiya Square in Cairo's Nasr City "to defend legitimacy" of the first freely-elected president.

Overnight clashes between Morsi's opponents and supporters killed at least 16 and injured nearly 800 nationwide.