03:43
Tieng Anh Vui
Ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi is being held over allegations of links with Palestinian militants Hamas and plotting attacks on jails in the 2011 uprising, it has been announced.
He is to be questioned for an initial 15-day period, a judiciary order said.
The Islamist leader has been held as an undisclosed location since his removal by the military on 3 July.
The announcement comes as supporters and opponents of the deposed president prepare to stage mass rallies in Cairo.
The order issued on Friday said the deposed president was suspected of conspiring with Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip and has strong links with Mr Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, during the uprising against former President Hosni Mubarak.
State-run Mena news agency says Mr Morsi is accused of colluding with Hamas to storm police stations and jails, "setting fire to one prison and enabling inmates to flee, including himself, as well as premeditated killing of officers, soldiers and prisoners".
The BBC's Jim Muir in Cairo says the statement provides legal cover for the continued detention at a time when the UN and Western powers are calling for the ousted president to be released or properly charged.
A spokesman for the Muslim Brotherhood, Gehad el-Haddad, described the accusations as "ridiculous". He told Reuters news agency that the order marked the return of the "old regime".
Heightened rhetoric
Our correspondent says the order comes as Egypt is bracing itself for a trial of strength by numbers on the streets between the two sides in a dangerously polarised crisis.
The army has warned any attempt to use violence during mass rallies planned on Friday will be "dealt with decisively and with force".
On Wednesday, army chief Gen Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called on people to take to the streets to give the military a mandate to confront violence and "terrorism".
Since Mr Morsi was ousted, dozens of people have died in clashes between supporters and opponents of the Islamist leader.
Militants have also staged deadly attacks in the Sinai peninsula.
The Tamarod movement that organised protests which preceded Mr Morsi's removal has urged its supporters to take part in Friday's rallies.
"We call on all of the great Egyptian people to gather in the squares on Friday to officially demand that Mohammed Morsi be put on trial and to support the Egyptian armed forces in its coming war on terrorism," it said.
Some analysts say the military could be preparing to move against sit-ins by Morsi supporters, including one in front of the Rabaa al-Adawiya mosque in a Cairo suburb.
Egypt's political roadmap
- 10 legal and constitutional experts to draft changes to the constitution
- Panel of 50 people from across Egyptian society consider the amendments
- Final draft put to referendum
- Parliamentary elections early 2014, followed by presidential elections
Mr Morsi narrowly won the presidential election in June 2012 to become Egypt's first democratically elected president, but his opponents accused him of trying to impose an Islamist agenda on the country.
Interim President Adly Mansour has set out a "roadmap" towards a revision of the constitution introduced by Mr Morsi and for fresh elections in early 2014, but this has has been rejected by the Muslim Brotherhood.
Hisham Qandil, who was prime minister under Mr Morsi proposed his own roadmap on Thursday, involving:
- the release of those detained by the army since Mr Morsi's removal
- an independent investigation into the deaths of at least 51 people at the Presidential Guards HQ earlier this month
- a delegation to be allowed to visit Mr Morsi to check on his health
- a halt to protest marches, with both sides agreeing to hold rallies only in specific locations
There has been no official response to Mr Qandil's suggestions, and military spokesmen have previously given the Muslim Brotherhood a deadline of Saturday to join the official process.
In a statement on Thursday, Ban Ki-moon called on the Egyptian military to free Mr Morsi and other members of the Muslim Brotherhood "or have their cases reviewed transparently without delay".
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