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Things in Egypt are going to get a whole lot worse before they get any better. Presdient Mohamed Morsi is considering enacting martial law until the parliamentary elections in the spring, state-owned Al-Ahram reported Saturday.

The decision to enact martial law would give the military authority to arrest people and use force as they deemed necessary to ensure the security of the egyptian people. Protests continued Saturday over Morsi's decree giving himself executive power over the courts until a constitution and a new parliament are elected. The order for martial law was approved by the sitting parliament in their last meeting, Al-Ahram reported, but it has not taken effect yet.

A military spokesman delivered a statement on state TV Saturday urging a "serious dialogue" to try and end the conflict between the Egyptian Islamists and their secular opponents. "Dialogue is the best and sole way to reach consensus that achieves the interests of the nation and the citizens," the spokesman said. "Anything other than that puts us in a dark tunnel with drastic consequences, which is something that we will not allow." Which, when paired with the martial law report, does not sound encouraging.