Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's new president, defies military rulers

GlobalPost

Mohammed Morsi, Egypt's newly elected president, defied the country's military rulers on Friday by reading the oath of office in Tahrir Square, reported the Associated Press.

Morsi said, "I fear no one but God," while addressing the tens of thousands of mostly Islamist supporters who had gathered in the square, according to the AP.

Speaking on the eve of his official swearing-in ceremony, which was scheduled to be held in front of a high court, Morsi vowed that the power of the people was above all.

He told the crowds, "You are the source of all authority and legitimacy," according to the BBC.

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Morsi vowed, "I promise you that I will not give up on any of the powers given to the president," said the BBC, a reference to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces recent decrees.

The official news agency MENA cited Morsi's spokesman Yasser Ali as saying that Morsi was "taking part in the march of a million Egyptians tomorrow at Tahrir Square and across the country" and would speak about "efforts to launch his program for the rebirth of Egypt," according to Agence France Presse.

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Morsi will be sworn in at 11 a.m. on Saturday before the Constitutional Court's general assembly, said the MENA news agency.

He is then scheduled to go to Cairo University and make an inauguration speech.

When he takes office, Morsi will be Egypt's first freely elected civilian president, noted the BBC.

CBS noted that the Muslim Brotherhood has stopped talking about an Islamic Egypt and Morsi has instead sought to build a diverse alliance of leftists, liberals and Christians to bolster his authority.

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