Catherine Ashton to visit Egypt for talks after violent weekend

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton will hold talks in Egypt after a violent weekend claimed more than 80 lives there.

Egypt’s interim government announced that Ashton would meet with acting President Adly Mansour and Mohamed ElBaradei, who heads international affairs.

Ashton is also expected to meet with the Muslim Brotherhood and the Tamarod group, which organized the protests leading up to former President Mohammed Morsi’s overthrow by the military.

“I deeply deplore the loss of life,” Ashton said in a statement ahead of her visit, adding that she would press for all sides to be included in the return to democracy, “including the Muslim Brotherhood” – Morsi’s marginalized party.