WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday voiced concern that a call by Egypt's army chief for rallies in his support could trigger more violence and instability in the country.
General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi urged people to come out onto the streets on Friday to "give me a mandate and command to end terrorism and violence."
But Washington said any demonstrations should be peaceful and that Egypt's interim leaders, in place since the toppling of president Mohamed Morsi on July 3, must remain focused on moving towards elections.
"We're very concerned about the calls," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
"We're concerned about the possibility of this leading to more violence."
She added that "clashes would make it very difficult to reconcile and get ahead of the cycles of unrest and instability."
She insisted the United States remained focused on "encouraging the interim government to move towards an inclusive process, which includes elections."
"We're monitoring closely steps they're taking to do just that," she said.
A coalition of Islamists led by Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood meanwhile said they would press ahead with their own rallies on Friday.
"Sisi's threats are an announcement of civil war," the group said.
Comments
Comments are closed.