Recognizing for the first time the strength of popular protest against his one-year rule, Morsi's allies said on Saturday they respected the demands of millions who took to the streets before his overthrow.

Also on Saturday, the interim foreign minister, Nabil Fahmy, offered an "open invitation" for all groups to take part in a road map for reconciliation but first called for an end to violence.

His comments came as Egyptian police called on supporters of Morsi to abandon their sit-ins, saying it would pave the way for his Muslim Brotherhood to return to a normal role in the country's political process.

However, Morsi's backers have vowed to continue protesting until he was reinstated.

"We cannot truly achieve reconciliation; no matter how hard we try, if there is a continuation of incitement of violence or a continuation of violence out on the street," Fahmy said.

Meanwhile, backers of Morsi on Saturday carried on with their weeks-long rallies in two encampments in Cairo.

Tarek El-Malt, a spokesperson for the pro-Morsi bloc, said his group wanted a solution that would "respect all popular desires", while rejecting any role for the army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in any political deal.

El-Malt said that these messages had been given at talks on Saturday in Cairo with the US Deputy Secretary of State, William Burns, and the European Union envoy Bernadino Leon.

On July 3, the head of Egypt’s army chief announced that president Mohamed Morsi was no longer in power. Al-Sisi also dissolved the Egyptian constitution.

The Chief Justice of Egypt’s Supreme Constitutional Court, Adli Mansour, was sworn in as interim president on July 4.

Since then, Egypt has been the scene of rival rallies and clashes between thousands of the supporters and opponents of Morsi.

NTJ/