Protests against President Mursi continues in Cairo

Opposition leaders in Egypt have called for large protests after President Mohammed Mursi passed a decree giving himself sweeping new powers.

Morsi on Thursday issued a declaration giving himself greater powers and effectively neutralising a judicial system that had emerged as a key opponent by declaring that the courts are barred from challenging his decisions.

Morsi framed his decisions as necessary to protect the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak nearly two years ago and to cement the nation’s transition to democratic rule.

The president’s decree, which dismissed Egypt’s prosecutor general, prompted opposition figure Mohamed El Baradei to accuse Morsi of usurping authority and becoming a “new pharaoh”, while other opposition figures on Friday called for nationwide protests

“This is a coup against legitimacy… We are calling on all Egyptians to protest in all of Egypt’s squares on Friday,” said Sameh Ashour, head of the Lawyers syndicate, in a joint news conference with leading dissidents Amr Moussa and ElBaradei.

“The president can issue any decision or measure to protect the revolution,” according to a decree read out on television by Yasser Ali, a presidential spokesman.

Protesters opposing and supporting Morsi took to the streets of Cairo soon after the decree was announced.

President Morsi has caused controversy by putting himself above oversight and protecting Islamist lawmakers who support him.

President Morsi Thursday declared that his decisions cannot be appealed by the courts or any other authority, citing a need to “protect the revolution.”

The decree announced by his spokesman also bars Egypt’s judiciary from dissolving the upper house of parliament and an assembly drafting a new constitution – two bodies dominated by Morsi’s Islamist allies.

In addition, he ordered retrials of former officials who used violence in efforts to suppress last year’s popular revolution against longtime president Hosni Mubarak.

Morsi’s supporters hailed the decision, saying it was long overdue. But the opposition called the move illegal and is planning a protest Friday. The president’s action comes after he received international praise for mediating a Gaza cease-fire.

Nobel laureate Mohamed AlBaradei said Morsi has usurped all state powers, warning that there could be dire consequences. The liberal politician is a leading opposition figure in Egypt and a former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Egyptian courts have been examining cases demanding the dissolution of both assemblies. But Morsi’s decree effectively neutralizes the judiciary system in favor of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood.

The announced retrials for those suspected of involvement in the killings of protesters during the 2011 uprising, could include a retrial of former president Hosni Mubarak. The ousted leader was sentenced to life in prison in June for failing to stop the killings. But, he avoided convictions on more serious offenses of corruption and ordering the deadly crackdown, angering many Egyptians.

Other Mubarak-era officials and security personnel also have been acquitted on charges of killing protesters, prompting critics to accuse the top government prosecutor of mishandling the cases. In his decree Thursday, Morsi fired that prosecutor, Abdel-Maguid Mahmoud, a Mubarak appointee who had been in the post for many years. The decree retroactively limited Mahmoud’s term to four years, bringing it to an immediate end.