Politically motivated arrests in Egypt make it difficult to see how the country will be able to move beyond its current political crisis, a State Department spokeswoman said on Thursday.

 

"The arrests we have seen over the past several days targeting specific groups are not in line with the national reconciliation that the interim government and the military say they are pursuing," spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a daily briefing.

 

Egypt's public prosecutor ordered the arrest of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohamed Badie and several other senior Islamists, accusing them of inciting violence following the killing of dozens of supporters of ousted President Mohamed Mursi on Monday.

 

"If politicized arrests and detentions continue, it is hard to see how Egypt will move beyond this crisis," Psaki added.