Egypt president must rescind new powers
By The Associated Press
This article was published November 24, 2012 at 12:42 p.m.
PHOTO BY MOHAMMED ABU ZEID / AP
Newly appointed Egyptian prosecutor general, Talaat Abdullah, arrives for work on his first day in office after being appointed by President Mohammed Morsi in sweeping edicts announced Thursday temporarily giving Morsi near-absolute power over the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government, in Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2012. Morsi fired the controversial former prosecutor general and created "revolutionary" judicial bodies to put Mubarak and some of his top aides on trial a second time for the killings of protesters playing to widespread discontent with the judiciary.
CAIRO — Leading democracy advocate Mohammed ElBaradei said dialogue with Egypt's Islamist president is not possible until he rescinds his decrees giving himself near absolute powers.
Speaking to a handful of journalists, including The Associated Press, ElBaradei said he is hoping for a "smooth transition without plunging the country into a cycle of violence."
But he said that may not be possible unless President Mohammed Morsi rescinds the decrees.
ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace laureate for his past work as the head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, has formed a "National Salvation Front" with other liberal and secular leaders, trying to unify the opposition against Morsi.
In the decrees issued this week, Morsi put himself above judicial scrutiny.
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