Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi ordered Egypt’s army to cooperate from Monday with the police and authorized it to arrest civilians until the results of the referendum to be held this weekend, AFP reported.

Egyptian President Mohammad Mursi ordered Egypt's army to cooperate from Monday with the police and authorized it to arrest civilians until the results of the referendum to be held this weekend, AFP reported.

The decree which AFP obtained and appears in the government's latest official gazette under "Law 107", was issued ahead of rival mass protests on Tuesday called by pro-and anti-Mursi camps over the referendum.

“The armed forces must support the police service in complete cooperation in order to preserve security and protect vital state institutions for a temporary period, up to the announcement of the results from the referendum on
the constitution," the decree says.

Armed forces officers participating in missions to preserve security and protect vital state institutions... all have powers of legal arrest," it says.

In contrast, MENA news agency reported that Mursi suspended Monday tax rises on a range of products, including alcohol and cigarettes, and tasked PM Hisham Qandil to start talks on the taxes "so as not to increase the burden on
citizens".

The tax hikes, also affecting steel, cement and other products, were part of budget efforts Egypt has agreed to make to secure a $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund to help its listing economy.