Cairo - Akram Ali
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi
Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi insisted on his \"constitutional legitimacy\" on Tuesday and called on the army to withdraw its threat to intervene
unless he resolves his differences with his opponents.
\"President Morsi insists on (his) constitutional legitimacy and rejects any attempt to overstep it,\" said a message posted on his official Twitter account.
\"(He) calls on the armed forces to withdraw their warning and rejects any dictates, domestic or foreign.\"
Earlier, military sources denied that they would issue a joined presidential-military statement. The army has given political parties in Egypt 48 hours to find a solution to the current crisis, saying it would draft a road map for the future if there was no progress. On Tuesday, military sources told news agency Reuters that the army had drafted a \'roadmap\' to end nationwide anti-government protests. According to reports, the roadmap would suspend the constitution and dissolve the Islamist-led parliament. The army would also propose a plan for the interim council to rule until the constitution is changed, followed by a presidential election. The army\'s 48-hour deadline ends on Wednesday
Meanwhile, opposition alliance National Salvation Front said the president\'s defiance of army sets the country on a course of confrontation and violence. Co-leader of the coalition Hamdeen Sabahi argued that the president\'s stubborn attitude would only \"lead to bloodshed,\" as he confirmed that his colleague Mohamed ElBaradei would represent the opposition in talks with the army.
Elsewhere, 22 people were injured in clashes that broke out between supporters and opponents of Morsi in Egypt’s second largest city, Alexandria.
Morsi\'s supporters clashes with residents of the Agami district when a march in support of his legitimacy arrived in their area.
\"The people want to apply the law of God!\" chanted a few hundred supporters of the Islamist president.
The supporters shot gunfire in order to disperse the opponents who were trying to obstruct the rally. The security forces fired teargas to disperse both sides.
Seventeen people were injured in those clashes according to a health ministry official.
Five others were injured in clashes that occurred in Alexandria\'s Sidi-Bishr district.