Anti-military rally cancelled

CAIRO. — A large anti-military rally planned in the Egyptian capital Cairo was cancelled yesterday over security fears.
Sources said marches to Roxi Square in Heliopolis had been cancelled as army snipers had been placed on buildings along the planned route. A Press conference planned near Roxi Square had also been cancelled.
However, others said marches to the Supreme Constitutional Court building would still go ahead. Crowds were seen gathering in Helwan, Giza and other suburbs as they prepared to march towards the court.

The AP news agency earlier said security had been increased around the building, in anticipation of the protests.
Protesters had been preparing to return to the streets on Sunday following calls for fresh demonstrations by the Muslim Brotherhood and the Anti-Coup Alliance against the interim, military-backed government. Meanwhile, Egypt’s interim cabinet was understood to have held a closed meeting to discuss the crisis in the country.

Adly Mansour, the interim president, has put forward a proposal to legally dissolve the Brotherhood.
International criticism of bloodshed in recent days has mounted, with Germany and Qatar jointly condemning the “brutal violence” and Ban Ki-moon, the UN chief, urging “maximum restraint” at what he termed a dangerous moment for Egypt.

Egypt’s foreign minister, Nabil Fahmy, rejected the criticism, saying on Egyptian TV that measures had to be taken to “confront terror against the people”,
In a statement, the army chief and defence minister, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, praised the “honourable role played by the armed forces and police … to protect national security”. He added that the military had no intention of seizing power.

But Brotherhood supporters remain defiant and are calling for the reinstatement of President Mohamed Morsi, who was ousted in a military-backed coup in early July.

Anti-coup protesters have been met with a brutal security crackdown, leading to the death of hundreds.
On Saturday, security forces ended a siege at a Cairo mosque, where hundreds of protesters had taken shelter the previous night following a day of deadly violence.

The government said violence on Friday left at least 173 people dead, including 95 in the capital and 25 in Alexandria. Among those killed on Friday was a son of Mohamed Badie, the supreme guide of the Brotherhood.

The Interior Ministry said it had arrested 1,004 Brotherhood “elements” during the unrest, and on Saturday security sources said the brother of Ayman al-Zawahiri, al-Qaeda’s chief, had been detained.

Meanwhile, European Union leaders, Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso, warned Egypt’s army and interim government yesterday that the bloc was ready to “review” ties failing an end to violence and return to dialogue.

In a long statement, the presidents of the European Council and European Commission leaders warned that further escalation could have “unpredictable consequences” for Egypt and for the region and placed responsibility for a return to calm on the army and government.

“The calls for democracy and fundamental freedoms from the Egyptian population cannot be disregarded, much less washed away in blood,” Van Rompuy and Barroso said.

“In cooperation with its international and regional partners, the EU will remain firmly engaged in efforts to promote an end to violence, resumption of political dialogue and return to a democratic process.

“To this effect, together with its member states, the EU will urgently review in the coming days its relations with Egypt and adopt measures aimed at pursuing these goals.”

The statement was released 24 hours before senior diplomats from the 28 EU nations hold emergency talks on Egypt in Brussels in which they are expected to call for a snap meeting of foreign ministers within the next days.

US lawmakers yesterday were split over whether to cut military aid to Egypt after a violent crackdown on supporters of Morsi.
While condemning the use of force by the military-backed interim government, many lawmakers expressed concern that halting aid would further erode US influence over a key regional ally.

US Senator John McCain, who called for suspending the US$1.3 billion in annual aid to the military after it overthrew Morsi in early July, said Washington risked losing credibility if it continued to turn a blind eye to the bloody crackdown.

“They have orchestrated a massacre,” he said, after the four-day death toll from mass shootings and street clashes climbed to more than 750 people.
“We have no credibility. We do have influence, but when you don’t use that influence, then you do not have that influence,” McCain, a Republican hawk and frequent critic of Obamas foreign policy, told CNN’s “State of the Union.”

McCain suggested Washington could pressure Egypt’s generals by cutting off aid, spare parts for US-made military equipment and backing for an International Monetary Fund loan to relieve the country’s devastated economy.

“For us to sit by and watch this happen is a violation of everything that we stand for,” he said.
Senator Lindsey Graham, another prominent Republican who visited Egypt with McCain in a failed bid to resolve the crisis earlier this month, also called for suspending aid.
Graham warned that the Islamist opposition could soon be transformed into an armed insurgency, calling Egypt an “absolute disaster in the making.” — AlJazeera/AFP.