CAIRO
By Amr Emam – Anadolu Agency
A high-level African Union delegation visiting Egypt called on Wednesday for calm in the North African country, encouraging political rivals to engage in peaceful dialogue and renounce violence.
"We want to put an end to the concept that this is about two countries fighting against each other," Alpha Oumar Konaré, the head of the delegation, told a news conference at the headquarters of the Arab League.
He said Egyptians needed to find a political way out of the current crisis before things got worse.
"Egypt is a country of tolerance. This is why it is important that all parties to the political situation here engage in dialogue."
Egypt has been in the grip of violence since the army ousted president Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's first democratically elected president, on July 3 following mass protests against him.
Knoare, a former Malian president and former chairperson of the African Union Commission, said they came to listen to everybody to reach an assessment of the political situation before submitting a report to the pan-African body about the political crisis in Egypt.
He added that he had met with a host of Egyptian government officials with the aim of reaching a correct understanding of the situation in the country.
"We will also seek to meet the Muslim Brotherhood," Konare said.
"We will go to them wherever they are."
Egyptian and African sources earlier told Anadolu Agency that the AU delegation plans to visit Rabaa al-Adawiya Square, the site of a month-long sit-in by Morsi supporters.
It will check the site and hold talks with representatives of the protesters.
Konare confirmed they had met late Tuesday with Morsi.
"The meeting was frank and transparent."
Konare said the AU delegation, which also includes the former president of Botswana and the former prime minister of Djibouti, does not have a specific political initiative to present to the Egyptians.
"We are only coming to listen."
He said a decision by the African Union earlier to suspend Egypt was not aimed to punishing the Arab-African country.
"The decision was a normal routine for countries where similar events happen."
The AU suspended Egypt’s membership following the army's removal of Morsi, in an automatic measure taken by the pan-African body following any military interruption of constitutional rule in a member state.
Egypt has sent high-level envoys to African countries to explain the latest developments in the country and demand revoking the decision.
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