Ousted Egypt leader Morsi in good health, says EU’s Ashton

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says Egypt’s ousted President Mohammed Morsi is “well”, but that she does not know where he is being held. Baroness Ashton said she had two hours of “frank, in-depth” discussions with Mr Morsi on Monday, without giving further details of the conversation. Mr Morsi had access to news and followed developments, she added. She is the first foreign diplomat to meet Mr Morsi since he was detained after being overthrown on 3 July. Lady Ashton’s second visit to Egypt in 12 days comes after more than 70 Morsi supporters were killed in clashes with security forces on Saturday. She held talks with the interim leadership, including army chief Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi and representatives of Mr Morsi’s Muslim Brotherhood. The ousted leader’s allies said they were planning a major protest in Cairo on Tuesday, and the interim government has warned that any violation of the law will be dealt with “firmly”. Security officials also threatened to dismantle the main protest sit-in at a square near the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in the capital’s north-east, where Saturday’s deadly clashes erupted.

Courtesy: www.bbc.com