Egypt moves to form new government as police seek Brotherhood leaders (VIDEO)

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Egypt's new leaders were pushing forward with the formation of a new government on Thursday, as police sought to arrest Mohammed Badie and other key Muslim Brotherhood figures.

Badie, the Brotherhood's "Supreme Guide," was among several senior figures of the Islamist movement that continues to defiantly back ousted president Mohamed Morsi.

Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood has spurned an offer from interim premier Hazem al-Beblawi to join the new government, and called for a mass rally on Friday against what it called "a bloody military coup."

Beblawi, a liberal former finance minister, began the talks on his cabinet line-up on Wednesday.

Interim president Adly Mansour has set a timetable for elections by early next year, while appointing Beblawi as premier and Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei as vice president for foreign affairs.

Badie is accused of inciting the violence in Cairo on Monday in which more than 50 people were killed, the BBC reported.

Egypt's new leadership was seeking to push forward with forming a new government on Thursday.

However, Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood has spurned an offer from interim prime minister Hazem al-Beblawi to join the new government, and called for a mass rally on Friday against what it called "a bloody military coup."

The defiance comes despite Beblawi refusing to rule out the participation of Muslim Brotherhood in the new government.

Press TV quoted him as saying:

“I do not look at political association… If someone is named from (the Brotherhood’s) Freedom and Justice Party, if he is qualified for the post [he may be considered]. I am taking two criteria for the next government. Efficiency and credibility."

The Brotherhood’s political wing, Freedom and Justice Party, rejected the offer, with spokesman Tareq al-Morsi saying:

"We reject all that comes from this coup."

Many senior Brotherhood figures have been detained or are on the run following the ouster of Morsi, 61, last week in a popular military coup.

Meanwhile, a foreign ministry spokesman has said Morsi himself is being held in a "safe place" and being treated in a "very dignified manner," the BBC reported.

"For his own safety and for the safety of the country, it is better to keep him in a safe place. Otherwise, the consequences will be dire."

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