Egypt army given right to make arrests over referendum
Posted : Monday, 10 December 2012 06:38AM
CAIRO (Reuters) - The Egyptian government has given the military the authority to arrest civilians to help safeguard a constitutional referendum planned for Saturday, the official gazette said.
The order, which a presidential official and military source confirmed appeared in the gazette late on Sunday, said the military would support and coordinate with police to protect "vital institutions" temporarily until the referendum result.
The decree gave army officers the right to conduct arrests and transfer detainees to prosecutors.
(Reporting by Yasmine Saleh and Marwa Awad; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Angus MacSwan)
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