The European Union has pressed military leaders and the interim Government for early elections following the July 3 coup against President Mohamed Morsi.
On Wednesday, Catherine Ashton, the EU’s foreign policy head, met the head of the armed forces, Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi; interim President Adli Mansour; Vice President Mohamed ElBaradei; and Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy.
Ashton also spoke for 45 minutes with representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood, the main faction behind the Morsi Government, and with the Tamarod movement, a key force in June’s protests against the President.
After the discussion, Ashton called for the freeing of Morsi from de facto house arrest in the Republican Guards Headquarters: “I have received confirmation that he is well. I believe he should be released.”
(Featured Photo: Catherine Ashton and interim Egyptian President Adli Mansour— Worst Date Ever?)
Lebanon Says It Will Ask EU Not To Blacklist Hezbollah
The Lebanese Presidency of the Republic issued a statement on Thursday saying that after discussions with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, the government agreed to inform the EU commission and member states of its request to abstain from blacklisting Hezbollah.
The statement said that the caretaker Foreign Affairs Minister Adnan Mansour would ask Lebanon’s representative at the European Union to make the announcement.
The statement adds that Hezbollah is a major component of the Lebanese community, so the decision to designate it as a terrorist organization should be based on objective and compelling evidence.
