Egyptian President praises and 'defends' army in speech

Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi Egypt's President Mohammed Morsi on Saturday expressed his gratitude for the role played by the Egyptian military institutions in protecting the country, commending the role of the army during the January 25 revolution and later in protecting the parliamentary and presidential elections.
Morsi gave a speech following an Iftar ceremony with the armed forces stationed in Egypt's eastern Ismailia, in which he referred to "those trying to disfigure the 'beautiful image' that was created through the unified stance taken by the people and the army together." He said that he will not allow these people to succeed in their "continuous attempts to hinder the road to democracy."
"I will not allow this whatever happens," declared the president, who ran as the candidate for the Muslim Brotherhood.
In his speech, Morsi told the attendees that in the current phase, there are two priorities for the army; one is "to be fully prepared to defend the country," and the second is to be patient.
"For my part, my responsibility is to defend you if anyone ever offends you," he said.
During the event General Ahmed Wasfi thanked Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, for "saving Egypt through a critical time of its history." Head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Tantawi retained his post as defence minister in the newly-formed cabinet, a post he has held since 1991.
Relations between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Armed Forces appear to have taken a harmonious turn after a period in which relations were strained. While some revolutionaries have accused the Brotherhood of negotiating with the military behind closed doors, there have been two moments of particular tension.
Last March, the now-dissolved parliament, dominated by the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, accused the SCAF of keeping Kamal El-Ganzouri's "incompetent" government for its own benefits. They threatened a number of times to withdraw confidence from the government.
The military council responded, telling the Brotherhood to "be aware of the lessons of history to avoid mistakes from a past we do not want to return to." Many observers noted this as a reference to the incidents of 1954, when a large number of Brotherhood leaders were jailed and the group outlawed when accused of involvement in an attempt to assassinate then-president Nasser.
The second point of particular tension came when the SCAF issued a constitutional addendum on the eve of presidential election results. The newly-issued articles transferred a number of powers from the presidential office to the military, and as a result the SCAF faced accusations of seeking to limit the influence of the Brotherhood when they saw that Morsi was likely to win the presidency.
Meanwhile, Morsi also vowed that he will enforce the law after sectarian clashes in Dahshur, about 40km south of Cairo, in which one Muslim was killed and at least 16 people, including 10 police officers, were injured.
One day earlier, Morsi said that what happened in Dahshur "doesn’t reflect the brotherly spirit between Muslims and Copts," before calling on Muslims to provide security for Copts.
"I call on my Muslim brothers and my Coptic brothers to return to each other and for my Muslim brothers to provide security for the Copts." he said after a Friday prayer which he attended in Egypt's southern province of Qena.
His call came after some 120 Christian families in Dahshur were evicted after the sectarian violence, which resulted in the death of a Muslim man.
This is the first case of sectarian violence since Morsi took office as the first Islamist president of Egypt.
“No one can accept that a brother attacks his brother,” said Morsi.
On Saturday, Morsi's spokesperson, Yasser Ali asserted that Dashour's Copts were not forced to leave their homes following recent clashes, adding that those Copts who left the town were motivated by fear of future clashes.
Ali said Morsi had received reports stating that Copts were not forced to leave but did so of their own volition.
"Copts who have suffered material damages will be compensated," Ali said, adding that the president also contacted al-Azhar's grand imam and the acting Coptic Pope to intervene to end the crisis.
Ali revealed that Morsi's presidential team will be announced to the people on Saturday night or Sunday morning at most.
"President Mohammed Morsi has not yet ratified the names included in the formation of the presidential team," Ali said in a statement on Saturday.
"The formation will be announced once the president gives his written approval," Ali added.
According to the constitutional declaration, a vice president will be appointed as well before 60 days have passed from the day Morsi took the oath of office, Ali stated.