MOSCOW, July 3 (RIA Novosti) - Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has rejected an ultimatum from the country’s armed forces, who demanded that the current crisis be resolved by Wednesday, media reported Tuesday.
In an evening televised address, Mohammed Morsi pledged loyalty to people and admitted he had made mistakes, the BBC reported. Morsi, however, said he was a legitimate president and added he would not be dictated to.
The Egyptian army delivered an ultimatum to Morsi asking him to meet the people’s demands and resolve huge protests against his rule or face an intervention within 48 hours, Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera reported Monday.
Some details of the Egyptian armed forces’ draft “roadmap” for the country’s future leaked to the BBC included new presidential elections, the new constitution’s suspension and parliament dissolution.
Tuesday’s clashes in the capital Cairo between the Islamist president’s opponents and supporters left seven people dead, according to Egypt’s health authorities.
The Egyptian opposition on Tuesday chose Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohamed Elbaradei as its “voice” in negotiations with the ruling regime, the local Al-Ahram newspaper reported.
The opposition’s June 30th Front said in a statement that Elbaradei, former director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, would communicate the people's demands to the authorities.
Elbaradei, who won the Nobel for his work on preventing nuclear energy from being used for military purposes, was chosen as the Egyptian army delivered the ultimatum to President Morsi.
Millions of protesters gathered around the country demanding Morsi’s ouster on Sunday, the first anniversary of his presidency. According to the Egyptian Health Ministry, at least 16 people were killed and more than 700 wounded across Egypt in clashes between Morsi’s supporters and opponents on Sunday night.
