Egyptian F-16 fighter jets make low passes over the capital

Egyptian F-16 fighter jets have made low passes over the capital, Cairo, as political tension heightens in the North African country.

Military jets flew over the center of the city on Sunday, but Egyptian air force officials were not immediately available for comment.

The appearance of the US-made F-16 fighter jets came a day after Egyptian army called on all parties to resolve the country’s political crisis through dialogue.

“The path of dialogue is the best and only way to reach agreement and achieve the interests of the nation and its citizens,” said Egyptian armed forces in a statement on Saturday.

The statement also added that “The opposite of that will take us into a dark tunnel with disastrous results — and that is something we will not allow.”

On November 22, Morsi issued a controversial decree declaring that no judicial body can dissolve the Constituent Assembly, which was writing the draft of the constitution.

The decree allowed the president to take “any decision or measure to protect the revolution.” It also made decisions and laws issued by the president “final and not subject to appeal.”

Ever since the decree was issued, there have been massive protests with bloody clashes between supporters and opponents of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood near the presidential palace in Cairo.

Recent reports say President Morsi has annulled the controversial decree to amend it.