Turmoil in Egypt continued Friday after an Islamist-dominated assembly raced through approval of a new constitution, which will now head to the Egyptian people for their vote, CBN News reports. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians say the new constitution, along with Islamist president Mohammed Morsi's recent power grab, are illegal, and street clashes continue to erupt between protesters and supporters of Morsi. The constitutional assembly had another two months to draft the document that will serve as the government's new framework, but the panel rushed through a draft in only 48 hours to beat an upcoming court ruling that could dissolve the body. "I am saddened to see this come out while Egypt is so divided," said Egypt's top reform leader, Nobel Peace laureate Mohammed ElBaradei. The original constitutional assembly included liberals, Christians and more moderate Islamists, but they all walked away when they saw the ultra-conservative Islamists taking over. Critics say the draft constitution could give Muslim clerics oversight over legislation, possibly curbing freedom of speech, women's rights and religious freedom.
