Egypt's al-Sissi warns of collapse of state
2013-01-29 12:56
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Cairo - Egyptian Defence Minister and military chief General
Abdel Fattah al-Sissi warned on Tuesday that the political crisis rocking the
country could lead to the collapse of the state.
Failure to resolve the situation "could lead to grave
repercussions if the political forces do not act" to tackle it, Sissi said
in comments posted on his Facebook page.
"The continuing conflict between political forces and
their differences concerning the management of the country could lead to a
collapse of the state and threaten future generations," Sissi said in the
comments, which were extracts of a speech he gave to students at a military
academy.
Sissi further warned that the political, economic, social
and security problems facing Egypt constitute "a threat to the country's
security and stability".
He stressed that "the attempts to undermine the
stability of state institutions is a dangerous thing that harms national
security and the future of the country", but stressed that "the army
will remain strong ... as a pillar of the state's foundations."
Fifty-two people have died in five days of violence that
erupted Thursday night in Egypt as the country marked the second anniversary of
the start of the uprising that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak.
A curfew has been imposed in three provinces - Port Said,
Ismailiya and Suez.
The bloodiest clashes and most of the deaths have occurred
in Port Said, with rioting breaking out on Saturday after 21 supporters of a
local football club were sentenced to death for their roles in a deadly
football riot last year.
