Morsi’s visit to US not canceled: Egypt

Egypt has rejected reports that President Mohamed Morsi has canceled his visit to the United States due to the protests against his recent controversial decree.

“We did not receive any official remarks on the declaration from the United States or the European Union,” the news website Egypt Independent quoted presidential spokesperson Yasser Ali as saying in a statement on Tuesday.

In September, Ali announced that Washington had extended an official invitation to the Egyptian president to visit the US on December 17.

On November 22, Morsi signed a controversial decree allowing him to “issue any decision or law that is final and not subject to appeal.”

Since then, thousands of people have converged on Liberation Square to protest against the decree and the speedy adoption of a draft constitution.

On Tuesday, tens of thousands of anti-Morsi protesters encircled the presidential palace in the capital. Nearly 20 people were injured in clashes with police.

There were also clashes between police and protesters in the central province of Minya, and Alexanderia, the Mediterranean port city on Egypt’s north coast.

On November 30, the Constituent Assembly approved the final draft of the new constitution. The president announced that a referendum on the new constitution will be held on December 15. The opposition has boycotted the referendum.