CAIRO
Egypt's National Security Council will convene late Monday to discuss how to deal with ongoing sit-ins by supporters of deposed President Mohamed Morsi.
It will be the security body's first meeting since the Islamist leader's ouster last month by the military.
The council includes interim President Adly Mansour, Vice-President for International Relations Mohamed ElBaradei, Prime Minister Hazem al-Beblawi, Defense Minister Gen Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim and Finance Minister Ahmed Gamal.
"The meeting will also touch on the latest security developments in the Sinai Peninsula and the operations conducted there by the armed forces, which have been largely successful against terrorist groups," sources close to the presidency said.
Egypt's National Security Council was established in accordance with Egypt's 2012 constitution, which was suspended by the military following Morsi's July 3 ouster.
Under the constitution, the council is comprised of the president, prime minister, the speakers of both houses of parliament, ministers of the interior, defense and foreign affairs, and intelligence chiefs, among other officials.
According to Egypt's national charter, the council is tasked with "adopting strategies for establishing security in the country; facing disasters and crises and taking necessary steps to contain them; and identifying threats to Egyptian national security, whether at home or abroad, and undertaking necessary actions to address them on both the official and popular levels."
Military expert Safwat al-Zayat told the Anadolu Agency that the National Security Council represented the country's highest authority for dealing with national security threats -- even higher than Egypt's National Defense Council, which is made up mostly of military officials.
Only the National Security Council, al-Zayat explained, has the authority to order the use of force against protesters. However, he added, the president had the right to accept or reject the council's recommendations.
Ever since Morsi's removal, supporters of the deposed president have been holding daily mass demonstrations and sit-ins nationwide to demand his reinstatement.
The two largest sit-ins are in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square in eastern Cairo and Nahda Square in Giza.
Earlier this month, the government mandated the Interior Ministry to take "all necessary measures" to disperse Morsi supporters, saying the sit-ins posed "a threat to national security."
