France condemns Egyptian violence, urges gatherings to be peaceful

The French government on Monday condemned "the acts of violence" in Egypt over the past three days when several scores of people are believed to have died in clashes. Anti-government protesters mainly in Cairo clashed with pro-government supporters and security services on the weekend commemorating the 1973 war against Israel. The holiday period was marred by incidents in several areas of the capital and more than 50 people were killed there. "We call for respect for the right of assembly and of demonstration and recall the duty to exercise this right peacefully," the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The French government also stressed its support for the "inclusive democratic process" in Egypt and said this process must be "open to all political tendencies which reject violence." This path should lead to creation of elected democratic institutions in Egypt in line with the timetable set out by the current roadmap adopted by the interim government, the Foreign Ministry said here. Egypt has been periodically wracked by violence since the military ousted President Mohamed Morsi on July, and since then his Muslim Brotherhood party has been banned.