U.S. Urges Calm, Dialogue in Egypt

The United States said on Friday that the assumption of sweeping powers by Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi was a matter of concern, amid a new round of protests in the country.

"The decisions and declarations announced on November 22 raise concerns for many Egyptians and for the international community," said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, in a statement.

"One of the aspirations of the revolution was to ensure that power would not be overly concentrated in the hands of any one person or institution," she said, referring to the uprising that toppled veteran ruler Hosni Mubarak.

Nuland warned that Egypt's "constitutional vacuum ... can only be resolved by the adoption of a constitution that includes checks and balances, and respects fundamental freedoms, individual rights, and the rule of law consistent with Egypt's international commitments."

"We call for calm and encourage all parties to work together and call for all Egyptians to resolve their differences over these important issues peacefully and through democratic dialogue," she added.

On Thursday, Morsi undercut a hostile judiciary that had been considering whether to scrap an Islamist-led panel drawing up a new constitution, stripping judges of the right to rule on the case or to challenge his decrees.

The decision effectively placed Morsi's presidency above judicial oversight until a new constitution is ratified.

Amid fears of a return to the authoritarian rule Egyptians suffered under Mubarak, protesters held rival rallies and attacked Muslim Brotherhood offices in several cities, including in Alexandria on the Mediterranean.

Morsi meanwhile insisted Egypt was on the path to "freedom and democracy."

"Political stability, social stability and economic stability are what I want and that is what I am working for," he told an Islamist rally outside the presidential palace.