Egypt criticise McCain over coup remarks

Egypt’s interim President Adly Mansour slammed US Senator John McCain for describing the ouster of former president Mohamed Mursi as a coup. The leading US Senator made the remarks at the end of a visit to the Egyptian capital, Cairo, On Tuesday. He was accompanied by Senator Lindsey Graham, press tv reported. McCain said, "The circumstances of (Mursi's) removal was a coup. This was a transition of power not by the ballot box. " He also warned that the situation in Egypt was getting dangerous, calling on the interim government’s officials to release political prisoners if they want to resolve the political crisis sparked by Mursi’s ouster on July 3. Egypt’s state television cited Mansour as describing the US Senator’s comments "an unacceptable interference in internal policies". Egyptian Presidential aid Ahmed El-Muslimani also reportedly rejected McCain’s remarks, saying, "John McCain is distorting facts. His clumsy statements are unacceptable in form and substance." McCain’s remarks contradict the US administration’s stance on Egypt’s recent political stalemate. The White House has reportedly said that the two senators do not represent the US government and only represent themselves. The US administration has so far avoided using the word coup for the ouster of Mursi. Secretary of State John Kerry said last week that the Egyptian army has restored democracy in the country by toppling Mursi. Egypt has been the scene of increasing deadly violence since the overthrow of Mursi by the army. Army chief, General Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, announced on July 3 that Mursi was no longer in office and declared the chief justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Mansour, as the interim president on July 4.