Egypt’s military rulers agree to speed up handover of power

Egypt’s military rulers agree to speed up handover of power
By Jeffrey Fleishman – Los Angeles Times – November 22, 2011

Egypt’s military rulers agreed Tuesday to speed up the timetable for a transfer of power to a civilian government, but it was not immediately clear whether the gesture would appease tens of thousands of protesters or calm the unrest that has left at least 29 people dead.

In another concession to protesters, according to state media, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces accepted the resignation of the widely unpopular military-backed interim government. The generals said a new “national salvation” government would be put in place until July, when the military would step aside.

“Presidential elections to be held by the end of June and the final preparations for handing over power by July 1,” Emad Abdel Ghafour, leader of the ultraconservative Islamist Nour party, told Reuters news service.

The military had previously indicated it would not relinquish control of the country until after presidential elections in 2013. Its latest moves were announced after emergency talks with political parties.

Demonstrators, who surged into the square as darkness fell, had promised not to leave until ruling generals themselves relinquished power. Egyptian TV reported that Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, who was chanted against and vilified by protesters, would address the nation Tuesday night. Dozens were injured in downtown Cairo as police fired tear gas to keep protesters from reaching the nearby Interior Ministry, a long reviled symbol of state repression. Demonstrators were angry not only at the military but also at political parties, including the dominant Muslim Brotherhood, for not strongly supporting a wave of nationwide protests that began Friday. …more