The National Salvation Front turned down an invitation for a debate between five members of the front and five members of the Constituent Assembly. The invitation was issued by Mohamed al-Beltagy, Constituent Assembly spokesperson and secretary of the Freedom and Justice Party. Amr Moussa, a member of the front, said that he did not think a debate was needed, but rather an acknowledgement that there is no national consensus on the draft constitution. He wondered why the assembly was calling for a debate now, after the first round of voting in the constitutional referendum has already taken place, and shortly before the second round is scheduled to begin on Saturday. The National Salvation Front is a group of opposition political parties and civil forces that reject the draft constitution and demand a new Constituent Assembly that is not controlled by Islamist parties. Preliminary results after the first phase of the referendum indicate that 57 percent of voters have approved the draft, while 43 percent voted against it. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
