Two US senators have
met Egypt's army chief and urged the country's divided political factions
to renounce violence and agree to a national dialogue.
Egypt's Armed Forces General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (R) meets with U.S. Senators John McCain (C) and Lindsey Graham at the Ministry of Defense in Cairo, August 6, 2013.
Lindsey Graham and
John McCain, both Republican senators, travelled to Cairo at the request of US
President Barack Obama.
At a press conference
on Tuesday night, the two asked Egypt's interim government to set forth a
"clear timetable" for holding new elections and finalising a new
constitution.
They also urged the government to reconcile with the Muslim
Brotherhood and its political allies, who have staged weeks of protests
since former president Mohamed Morsi was deposed by the army on July 3.
"You have to sit
down and talk to each other, even though you may not like the people at the
other side of the table," Graham said.
Both senators
described the toppling of Morsi as a coup, a term which Obama himself has
avoided - because it would require a suspension of US military aid to Egypt.
"It was a
transition of power not by the ballot box," Graham said. "The people
who were elected are now in jail."
The state news agency MENA said little about the senators' meeting with General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, the army chief, only that the two sides exchanged views on political developments and discussed efforts to end "the state of political polarisation".
Army chief of staff Lieutenant General Sedki Sobhi and US ambassador Anne Patterson also attended the meeting. The senators also met separately with interim vice president Mohamed ElBaradei and prime minister Hazem el-Beblawy.m Cross Post
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