Protesters use slingshots to launch stones at riot police
during clashes near Qasr el-Nil bridge, in Cairo.
REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih
Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi has cancelled a planned
visit to Paris this week, France's presidency said today, as a
political crisis flares in Egypt.
Mursi had been due to arrive in Paris on Thursday afternoon
following a visit to Berlin on Wednesday and later meet
Hollande over breakfast on Friday.
Mursi's spokesman Yasser Ali said in Cairo that the president
would reschedule a visit at another time.
When pressed to give a reason, he said: "The president will
travel to Germany on a one-day trip and return to Egypt to
closely follow the situation."
Mursi declared a month-long state of emergency on Monday in
three cities on the Suez Canal in the face of violent
anti-government protests.
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