Egyptian president backtracks his overreaching decree

Egyptian President Mohammed Mursi is working to calm his nation following violent unrest due to a decree that would extend his powers, the BBC reported.

The New York Times reported that a spokesman for Mursi went back on the attempt to assert authority even beyond the courts, seemingly denying any such implications.

Mursi's allies in the Muslim Brotherhood also cancelled plans to rally for his support in an effort to quell the angered nation, the New York Times said.

The BBC reported that the presidential spokesman reassured the Supreme Judicial Council that the president's decree of power would only apply to "sovereign matters." The opposition still plans to rally Tuesday. Mona Amer, a spokesman for the opposition, told Reuters that they asked for a cancellation of the decree, not a compromise.