CAIRO — Egyptian authorities Thursday offered "safe passage and protection" for thousands of supporters of the country's ousted president if they end their marathon sit-ins in Cairo.
The offer by the Interior Ministry appears to be the first step in an effort by Egypt's new leadership to clear the more than a month-long protest by Mohammed Morsi's followers in an eastern Cairo district and in the capital's twin city of Giza.
It came a day after Egypt's military-backed Cabinet ordered the ministry, which is in charge of the police, to clear the two sit-ins, arguing that they posed a threat to national security and terrorized citizens.
"The Interior Ministry ... calls on those in the squares of Rabaa el-Adawiya and Nahda to listen to the sound of reason, side with the national interest and quickly leave," Interior Ministry spokesman Hany Abdel-Latif said in a televised address.
"Whoever responds to this call will have a safe passage and protection," he added.